A Sparrow's Song
by sparrowlina
Summary: Loki has been out causing mischief since his love has disappeared suddenly. Now that he's back in Asgard, it's a race against time to find Lina who has been hidden away in the place he once wanted to rule. [[SEQUEL TO "THE CAGED SPARROW"]]
1. Chapter 1

1—

Lina waited at the coffee shop she was going to be picked up at. She was nervous, fidgeting repeatedly with her blouse and hair. She must have checked at least a hundred times if she had her resume and application in her bag. Her heart was racing like a thoroughbred in a championship race and she wasn't even at the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility yet.

A dark car pulled up in front of the shop, a man in a suit stepping out and walking in through the doors.

Lina stood up and faced the man as he walked towards her.

"Lina Sparrow?" he asked.

Lina nodded calmly. Her heart seemed to be caught in her throat and she desperately prayed that he wouldn't ask her to talk. She was so nervous, she didn't think she had the capabilities to string together sentences at this point.

"Please follow me."

Lina did as she was told, following the man to the vehicle she had seen him arrive in. She climbed into the back seat, buckled herself in, and sat quietly throughout the duration of the car ride. The man didn't talk to her unless he was giving her instructions as to what was going to happen once they reached S.H.I.E.L.D. and she was thankful for that. Any extra speaking aside from her interview may have sent her into a frenzy. For some reason her nerves were getting the best of her at the worst possible time.

As she mentally wrestled with herself to calm down, she felt the car slow to a steady stop.

She swallowed hard knowing that the next few hours would determine her entire future. Watching the suited man climb out of the driver's seat, Lina grabbed her bag and unbuckled her seatbelt.

He opened the door for her and held out a hand to assist Lina in climbing out of the vehicle.

She smiled warmly as she took his hand and stepped out onto the concrete. Her heels clicked with each step she took as they walked up a long walkway that lead to a pair of glass doors. The building itself was magnificent, large glass windows flanking the doors they were about to walk into.

As they entered, the hustle and bustle of this agency made itself very apparent to Lina who nearly lost her escort because she kept pausing to take in the sights. People walked with purpose and responsibility past Lina and the man. She wondered what they were up to and wanted to follow them, just to be nosey.

"I don't mean to be rude, Miss Sparrow, but we aren't on a tour here," the escort shortly said. "We can't be late."

"I-I'm sorry," she stammered, mentally bashing herself for acting like a small child in a candy store at the most inappropriate time.

The pair walked towards a tall silver staircase that led to a catwalk that overlooked the scene they had just walked through. Upon it, stood a man with a black eye patch and a long, black coat. He leaned against the railing of the catwalk, seeming to be waiting for the man and Lina.

As they approached, the man with the eye patch faced them and said, "You're late."

The man sighed as he looked at Lina in a way that seemed to say, "I told you so."

Taking the hint, Lina walked forward and began to apologize. "I'm sorry, sir. It was my fault that we were late and I—"

"Please," the man said, cutting her off. "I'm not here for your excuses, I'm here to see if you're a worthy enough person to work with us. I'm Director Fury." He walked closer to Lina, towering over her small figure. She swore he could smell her fear as he stared down into her eyes. "Follow me."

He turned on his heels and briskly started to walk away from her, Lina barely keeping up with his long strides.

It was not a good day to wear high heels.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Asgard's familiar surroundings and the castle's once welcoming halls paid no homage to the man who had now become such a stranger.

Loki walked, guards surrounding him, towards the throne room where he knew Odin would be waiting. He was to be sentenced today for his actions against Midgard. His chains echoing through the halls reminded him of his impending punishment; the cuffs on his neck, wrists, and ankles weighing heavier and heavier with each step. The chains brought back familiar memories of when he had been captured by Maura, setting his heart into a crazed rage because it reminded him also of Lina.

Lina…

She had been missing for over 1,000 years. One night: he asked for her hand in marriage, the next: she had disappeared with no trace, no evidence of kidnapping, and no way to explain to the prince how the one thing he felt in his life was most perfect for him was gone like a puff of smoke. The only remnant of her in the room was the ring he had given her for their engagement, left sitting on his desk with the story books they would read to each other every day.

He clenched his fists and closed his eyes as they entered the throne room. He pushed out the memories of Lina and tried to regain his composure. His anger that had developed because of her disappearance had brought him to a dark place, sparking a fire that would eventually engulf everyone that was in Loki's path. The additions of Thor's coronation and learning he was not Odin's son, but a frost giant, simply added fuel to the blaze in his mind.

He and the guards approached Odin in his throne.

Frigga stood to Loki's left on the side of the room, concern etched upon her face. She had been worried about him. When he had disappeared after Thor had made his return to Asgard, she had thought he was dead and her heart ached for her little boy. When she learned that he had returned to Midgard and of all of his schemes, she felt disappointment with him. In a way, though, she understood where his anger was coming from. With all of the truths that came out about his life as well as the loss of the woman he loved so dearly, his anger was somewhat justified.

"Loki," she called out to him, her hands fidgeting nervously.

"Hello, mother," he coolly replied, turning to her. "Have I made you proud?"

"Please don't make this worse," she pleaded. She wanted to reach out and take her son into her arms to not only reassure him, but also herself, that everything was going to be okay.

Loki's eyes narrowed as he replied, "Define worse."

"Enough," Odin's voice interrupted.

Loki turned to look at the All-Father as he continued, "I will speak to the prisoner alone."

Frigga took one last look at Loki before obeying her husband's orders, exiting through a door that was behind her.

He watched his mother leave, swallowed hard, then faced the All-Father once more. He stepped forward, mockingly smacking his heels together like a soldier standing at attention. The _clang_ from his chains echoed throughout the large room.

Breaking the silence, Loki started to laugh to himself. "I really don't see what all the fuss is about."

"Do you not truly feel the gravity of your crimes?" Odin asked him, his face unwavering. "Wherever you go there is war, ruin, and death."

"I went down to Midgard to rule the people of Earth as a benevolent god," Loki explained, "just like you."

Odin shook his head. "We are not gods. We are born, we live, we die; just as humans do."

Loki bobbed his head back and forth as if pondering this new idea. Sarcastically, he added, "Give or take 5,000 years." He smiled smugly back at Odin.

"All this because Loki desires a throne."

Loki's expression turned cold and hard. He argued firmly, "It is my birthright."

"Your birthright," Odin shouted, leaning forward towards Loki, "was to die as a child…"

Loki's face grew softer, the words Odin were crafting together starting to get to him.

"…cast out onto a frozen rock. If I had not taken you in, you would not be here now to hate me."

"If I am for the axe," Loki pleaded, walking towards Odin, "then for mercy's sake just swing it." He paused, then continued, "It's not that I don't love our little talks it's just…I don't love them."

"Frigga is the only reason you're still alive." He paused for a moment. "Your sentence is to stay in the dungeons, and what happens to you there will be decided on day-to-day basis. You may be tortured to no end either physically or mentally. You shall stay there until such a time where you can prove yourself worthy of your freedom."

Loki looked at the All-Father, slight fear etched in his features. The guards started to pull him away, taking him down to his fate in the dungeons.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Thor walked towards the golden dome to pay a visit to Heimdall. It had been his routine nowadays that after he and his fellow warriors celebrated a victory, they'd eat and drink, and then he'd wander off to see Heimdall and discuss matters with him. Tonight was different now that Loki had been sentenced.

"Back again, Prince Thor?" Heimdall called out, not even needing to turn and see who was coming up behind him.

"I figured that after so many nights, you wouldn't be so surprised at my visits," Thor laughed, walking next to the lifted area where Heimdall stood. "How is she?"

He was referring to the mortal that he had met during his time on Earth. His heart longed for Jane Foster, although his father didn't approve of his feelings for her. To Odin, she was a waste of time for Thor to pursue because her life was so short. She wouldn't last anywhere near as long as Thor would in terms of age. It didn't matter to Thor. In all the years he had spent in Asgard, he had never felt the feelings he felt during the short time he was on Earth with Jane.

"She is doing fine. She longs for you dearly, though."

Thor looked down and sighed softly. The guilt he felt for not seeing her sooner deepened every time he heard Heimdall explain her efforts to find him.

"Aside asking about Miss Foster," Heimdall asked, turning towards Thor, "how do you feel about your brother's sentence?"

"If it is what Father thinks is best for him, then so be it."

Heimdall looked more definitely at Thor. "Is that how you really feel?"

Thor looked at him, hurt growing in his eyes. He walked over to the steps that led to where Heimdall stood and sat down, hanging his head in defeat. "I'm not sure. I know that he has so much fury buried within himself after everything that's happened. I still consider him my brother even though he may not see me in the same light."

"Do you think things would have been different if he had been allowed to wed?"

Thor smirked slightly and nodded slowly. "Indeed I do." It wasn't difficult to see that Lina's disappearance had a great effect not only on Loki, but on the entire household. Thor missed the person he considered to be a little sister to him. He kept her sword and bow with his personal possessions until such a time that she would return. He wanted to see his brother happy again, but even with the tricks Loki pulled on everyone in order to feel some satisfaction, Thor saw through the illusion. Loki was a broken man, a shadow of what he used to be. There was no denying the pain that he felt.

"You wish to find Princess Sparrow."

"It is an impossible task," Thor interjected. "She's been missing for so long. For all we know she could be dead."

"Or being hidden."

Thor furrowed his brow and looked up towards Heimdall. "Heimdall?"

"At one point," he began, "when I was looking down at Midgard for your Miss Foster, I sensed something. Something more powerful that what I'm used to seeing there. I haven't felt anything like that since the last time I kept watch over you and Loki."

"Do you think…?"

Heimdall closed his eyes and breathed in and out deeply. "It's very possible, but I'm not sure if it's true."

Thor looked around and stood up suddenly, making his way out of the dome. He stopped and turned to face Heimdall. "Not a word to anyone."


	2. Chapter 2

2—

Thor walked his way back to the castle, a million and one thoughts running through his mind at once. His mind kept jumping from Lina to Loki. What if she was alive? What had happened to her? What was she doing not trying to come back to Asgard? A dark thought had crossed his mind as he turned the various corners to get to his mother's room: what if she couldn't get back?

His fists clenched at the thought as he stood outside of his mother's door. He wanted Lina back home with their family. His heart ached with his love for her. She was his little sister, the one woman besides Jane and his mother that he would fight to the death for. She was always there for him, to share laughs and sorrows with. She looked out for him and even though he looked out for her, she still had suffered and gone missing.

"Come in, Thor," his mother called, seeming to know that he was going to come to her that night.

Relaxing his fists, he pushed the door open. Frigga was sitting on her couch, mending a quilt, as a fire burned in the fireplace. The warm light enveloped the room, casting shadows all along the walls.

She looked increasingly tired by the day. The years had gone by long and slow. Frigga had gone through more through the 1,000 years that had just passed than her whole lifetime. Watching Loki spiral out of control, losing Thor momentarily, and especially losing Lina indefinitely had taken their toll on her. Her blonde hair had started to gray, her perfectly formed curls starting to stray out of place.

Frigga looked up at Thor momentarily, locking eyes with her elder son. Hers pierced his, longing for happy news. She looked back down at her handiwork, finishing up her last stitches. "It's been quite some time since you've come to me here, my son." She set the quilt on the side and gestured for Thor to sit next to her.

Ignoring his mother's offer, Thor strode over to the fireplace, leaning his arm against the mantle. He stared into the flickering flames as they danced in delight. "I visited with Heimdall tonight."

"As you do every night," Frigga added, facing her son. She looked up at him and studied his features. He looked very concerned, his eyes lit with an energy she had assumed to be lost from his heart after all these years. "Is there something the matter with your Jane Foster?"

He closed his eyes and sighed. "No, thankfully." He stood up straight and walked towards the open window to his left. "Have you ever wondered, mother, what happened to Lina that night?" The stars lit up the night, his vision clouded with their beauty.

Frigga was taken aback by the question. It wasn't something she liked to think about. Various scenarios had run through her mind and none led to pleasant endings. It had been so long that she had begun to lose hope of ever seeing her would-have-been daughter again. "I've always wondered, Thor…"

Thinking back to the day that Lina had gone missing, Frigga remembered the sudden state of panic she had awoken with. She had discussed the details of the night with her husband before they had gone to bed. It was a happy night for both of them. They were happy to see their youngest son finally happy and overjoyed.

Loud crashes had told Frigga something had gone terribly wrong. She had shot out of bed and ran towards the hall just in time to see Loki collapsing onto his knees in pure terror, Thor running down the hall to him. Loki's expression haunted her for many nights. It was as if all nine realms were caving in on him, his hope disappearing from every feature.

She had run over to him and taken his face in her hands to make him look at her. Tears were escaping from his eyes, which were already full of hurt, panic, and confusion. He had spoken two words to Frigga before going with Thor to try and find Lina outside of the castle: "She's gone."

"What do you think happened?" Thor asked, bringing Frigga out of her thoughts. He was facing her now, the moon creating a silhouette around his figure.

She stood up and walked to join Thor at the window, she too looking up at the stars. "I've had many theories, none of them ending in a favorable way for Loki."

Thor looked down. He too had come up with what were most likely theories that were similar to Frigga's. He remembered scouring every inch of the castle with Loki. No signs of intrusion, no signs of struggle; it was as if she had just disappeared from right beneath their noses. Not even Heimdall had said that he had seen anything entering or leaving Asgard that night.

"Why do you ask, Thor?" Frigga asked.

Thor shifted his gaze to his mother. "Heimdall was telling me tonight that he could sense a strong being on Earth. He said it was something that he usually didn't see unless people like Loki and I were present there."

Frigga's heart skipped a beat. Excitement started to brew within her. "Do you think…?"

"Heimdall said it wasn't a strong enough feeling to determine whether or not it was her. To search Midgard for her would take too much time as well, especially when we are not even sure she's there." Thor closed his eyes and leaned against a wall. "My concern lies in, if it is her, whether or not she will be able to come home."

Frigga nodded. She looked down at her hands, her nimble fingers playing with a ring on her left hand. "Have you told Loki?"

Thor shook his head. "Why bring up his hopes? To him it would just be a cruel gesture, especially in light of recent events."

"He still is your brother," Frigga scolded. "He has the right to know."

"I cannot be the one to tell him."

Frigga sighed and returned to her place on her couch, resuming where she left off with her quilting. "I can tell him."

Thor watched his mother continue her craft. "Are you sure that you want to?"

Frigga nodded. "He needs some light in his life at a time like this. You have no idea what he will be going through during his time in the dungeons. Someone in his situation needs hope in whatever form it may take."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

She sat in a silver chair in a room with walls made of glass. Everywhere she looked there were agents walking to places with many responsibilities to be had. Her gaze followed each one's expressions: serious and full of purpose. She then brought her attention back to Director Fury who was sitting across from her. He was looking over her application and resume. Next to those he seemed to have a file, no doubt filled with the details of Lina's life.

Something inside her wanted to know what was in that manila folder, considering that she couldn't really remember anything prior to that morning. It was probably something that she shouldn't mention at this time, lest she hurt her chances of being hired at this organization.

"Extensive police work, worked undercover for the F.B.I., good interrogation skills," Fury rattled off. He looked up at Lina, his expression failing to show any sign of being impressed. "Why did you apply to work here at S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

Lina shifted uncomfortably in her chair. What could she say? It's not like she had a prepared speech going into today. It's not like she knew anything at all. When did she ever work for the F.B.I.? What was the F.B.I.?

"Um…" she managed to get out. "I-I wanted to come and work here because…I…"

"For such a great interrogator, you really don't have good speaking skills," Fury interjected. His patience was wearing thin for the girl. There was something about her, though, that he couldn't shake. When his file had come across his desk earlier in the week, he was tempted to throw it into the trash with all of the other wanna-be S.H.I.E.L.D. applicants. Her face was familiar to him though, but he couldn't place where. Her lack of memory now cemented his instinct about why he wanted to meet her.

Lina took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and collected her thoughts before speaking again. "I want to work here because I want to be able to help people. The attacks on New York showed that there was a need for more people to be part of this agency so the least I could do was apply and hope to be accepted. I don't want to see anyone else get hurt."

"Okay, Miss America." The director stood up and walked towards one of the glass walls that overlooked the main portion of the agency. "I can understand your concern but I don't think we need more compassionate, caring souls here." He turned to look at her with a hard stare. "This agency isn't for everyone, so you better have a damn better reason why you're here."

Lina couldn't break eye contact with the man. Her heart started to beat faster and faster. She tried to rack her brain for any other information regarding her past that would make her want to join and eventually, she settled for just the truth. "I want to know who I am. I feel that joining this agency might be able to help me figure it out."

Nick Fury scoffed at the thought, smiling to himself as he sat back down in front of Lina. "'To know who you are'? Do you know how many people are dying to get into the seat you're sitting in and the best you can give me is that?"

"I honestly don't know who I am, Director Fury. I want to take this time to find out what my life is really about and I think that S.H.I.E.L.D. is the only way for me to know. I don't even remember anything that happened prior to this morning." Her voice had grown firm. Her frustration was growing.

"That might just be the result of one too many shots of tequila last night," Fury shortly added as he started to gather Lina's papers into the manila folder he had brought with him.

Lina's face grew hot as she got more upset.

He looked at her, sensing her anger. "Getting upset won't help anything. Be grateful you even had the opportunity." Looking over her file once again, Fury added, "Report here tomorrow, first thing in the morning. We'll put you in as a temporary hire since your skills are so extensive. I want to see how you do in the workplace. We'll discuss your permanent employment later."

With that, Director Fury left the room, leaving Lina wondering what had just happened.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Frigga's decent into the dungeons seemed to be longer than usual, the weight of the news she carried seeming to slow her down. She couldn't begin to imagine what Loki's reaction would be to seeing herself, let alone learning about the possible location of Lina.

Her footsteps echoed down the final set of stairs as she set eyes on Loki's cell. There was a bed on one side, a table with chairs opposite it, and a book case set behind the table. It would have been a nice set up if the room had been organized. One of the pillows had been shredded, the feathers scattered all over along with papers being strewn across the floor. One of the chairs had been knocked over and the table had been broken in half, seeming to have been used to hit something.

Or someone.

Frigga swallowed hard as she looked further into the room to see her son reading a book. He looked a little disheveled, but not as bad as she had expected. He had only been in the dungeons for one day so they couldn't have done too much to him.

Closing her eyes, Frigga used her magic to gain access to the cell, walking over to where Loki sat.

His eyes stopped midsentence. Closing the book, he looked up at his mother, smirking. "Hello."

"Loki," she said, kneeling down next to him, "what have they done to you."

"Oh, nothing that couldn't be handled," he replied, standing up and placing his book back on the bookshelf. "I'm sorry that I didn't get a chance to clean up for you." He walked towards the table and then turned to face Frigga once again. "Why are you here?"

"I came to check on you. I wanted to make sure you were all right." Frigga sat down on Loki's bed, still trying to figure out in her mind how to make this conversation go.

"Ahh," Loki replied, his hands behind his back as he walked around the room. "And what of Thor? And Odin? Did they not want to come down and see me?" He was spitting venom at her now. Still filled with anger, Loki didn't want to be bothered with his so-called family any longer. They didn't understand him, they didn't want to help him, at least in his eyes they didn't.

Frigga looked at him sternly. "Loki, that's not fair."

"And my imprisonment is?"

"In a way, it is. You brought this upon yourself."

Loki laughed as he looked back at Frigga again, his eyes narrowing and his smile growing. "Of course, playing the guilt card. Fine."

"Your father is just doing what's best for you."

"He's not my FATHER!" Loki shouted.

Frigga sat still, her expression not changing. Tears welled in her eyes. "Then am I not your mother?"

Loki's features suddenly grew soft. He was becoming a monster. The woman that had cared for him all of these years despite what she knew him to be sat before him trying to comfort him and all he was doing was yelling at her and making her feel unappreciated. He walked to her and sat next to her, burying his face in his hands.

"Loki," Frigga started, resting a hand on his shoulder. "It will take time for the wounds that have been opened to heal. You need to let time do that and help it along by not facing everything that comes at you from this family as if it's going to hurt you. All we want is to have our Loki back."

Loki shook his head and rested a hand on Frigga's as he replied, "I don't know if that man will ever return. Not without her." His mind raced back to 1,000 years ago when he lost his little flower. He had awoken from his slumber thinking he would find her wrapped up in his arms. Instead his bed was empty. The bath wasn't running, the window was wide open, and a shiny object was sitting on the table: Lina's ring. The fear that had overcome his body when he couldn't find her had increased greatly when neither he nor Thor could find her at all. He remembered falling to his knees, crying out in pain as Frigga came to his aid to comfort him.

Nothing was the same after that. His heart was empty and he couldn't fill the void. He succumbed to a dark side of him that he thought had been extinguished with the lightness of Lina's love. Without her he could never find happiness. Without her, he was nothing.

"What I wanted to talk to you about, Loki," Frigga confessed, turning her body more to face Loki.

His eyes lit up, his face snapping to attention. "What do you mean?"

"Thor had been talking to Heimdall last night," she began, "and he told me that Heimdall mentioned seeing something on Earth that had the same energy that you and Thor have when you're there. It isn't confirmed yet, but there is a chance that it's Lina."

Loki's mouth slightly opened at the thought. Suddenly he was overcome with anger. "He's lying." He stood up and walked towards the chair that was still standing, placing his hands on its back.

Frigga stood up, concerned for what her son was feeling. "Loki, Thor would never lie to you, especially in the state that you're in. Remember that you're not the only one that was affected by her disappearance."

"ENOUGH!" he yelled, throwing the chair across the room.

Frigga shielded herself as the chair smashed into a thousand pieces and rained onto the floor and bed.

Loki dropped to his knees in defeat, his hands balled into fists that were resting on the floor in front of him. "I do not want my hopes to be brought up for this." He felt a pain in his chest that mimicked the pain he felt so long ago. It haunted him every day. He yearned to see Lina, to run his fingers through her soft hair, to deliver a flower to her every day when she woke up, to kiss her, to tell her he loved her. "No amount of trickery will fool me into thinking that she's still alive."

Frigga walked over to her son and joined him on the floor, taking his balled fists into her hands. "She is alive, Loki."

He looked at her with tear filled eyes, his heart breaking with every word she said.

"We will find her. I promise."

"And if you do not?"

Frigga didn't know what to say. Her eyes started to tear as well as she pulled Loki in to her, hugging her son for the first time in many years. It was as if she had her baby back, comforting him as he sobbed into her shoulder.

"We will find her, Loki," she mustered through her sobs. "I promise."

**Hello All! I just wanted to say thanks for the support with the sequel! I've been seeing a lot of great feedback and I'm glad a lot of people have been enjoying it!**

**I wanted to send out a HUGE thanks to Chelsea Di Marco Macbeth for being my writing buddy and letting me bounce ideas off of you. If anyone has any ideas on how to make the story better just send me a message. I'm always excited to hear from you guys :)**

**To RosiePosie15: I'm glad you're so excited for the new story! I took your advice with adding the detail. It takes a little while longer to get the chapters out but it makes for a much better story :)**

**To Dreams in Azure: Aww you're so sweet! Thank you for your support. It's great to see someone has been so moved by my writing and I appreciate your support a lot :D I'm looking forward to your story so just let me know when you get started on it and I'll go check it out :)**

**Remember to review and let me know how you like the story! :D**

**With love,  
-sparrowlina**


	3. Chapter 3

3—

Lina arrived back home with a new sense of exhaustion in her bones. The shield vehicle that had brought her to the agency that day was the same one that had brought her home. The driver told her that he would arrive once again for her in the morning and to be ready when he did.

The events that had unfolded that day had made her mind very scattered. She supposed she should feel very happy that she now had a job. What exactly did it mean though? It wasn't any good to her if she still couldn't figure out what her life was about.

She dropped her bag by the front door, kicked off her blister causing heels, and proceeded to walk to the bathroom. Splashing water on her face, she studied her features in the mirror before her. The bags under her eyes signified her lack of sleep and she could really start to feel it. A warm shower would probably do her good.

She stripped and started her shower, stepping in and allowing the hot water to relax her tense muscles. Her mind started to organize itself as the steam started to fill the bathroom. Thinking back to that morning, Lina tried to piece together what she did know.

She was now working at S.H.I.E.L.D.

Lina washed and rinsed her long brown locks.

She had a necklace that was of great importance to her, but she didn't know why.

Lina washed her body and started to turn off the water.

She...did she have a family?

Lina wrapped herself in a towel and walked out of her bathroom, the necklace dangling from her hand.

Taking in her surroundings, she saw a T.V. sitting across from a comfy little couch. A bookshelf sat on the wall that was next to her bedroom door. Another shelf that had various pictures on it sat opposite of her bedroom.

She walked over to it, taking in the faces that she saw in the frames. One picture had herself, another girl who looked like herself, and an older woman who she assumed to be her mother. Looking at all of the pictures, in fact, it seemed that she didn't have a father. Maybe she wasn't close to her father at all?

Many other pictures had herself and the girl who looked just like her in them. Lina was a twin.

She started to smile as she thought back, remembering something about this twin. It was important, just like the necklace, but she couldn't quite place her finger on what the fact about her twin was.

She walked into her bedroom, grabbed clothes to change into, and dressed. She walked back out, still holding the necklace, and sat on her couch staring at it. Why did this little trinket mean so much to Lina? It was unlike anything she had ever seen. The way it sparkled in the light made it seem not only very beautiful, but very expensive. Did she have a relationship with someone?

Shaking her head out of the thought, Lina looked around the room again. This place that was her so-called "home" felt nothing like one. There was comfort, but the kind that one finds when they stay at a hotel or an inn: there wasn't something that defined it as her safe place, something that made it really stand out as her abode.

Lost in her thoughts, Lina didn't realize it was 11pm until she glanced over at the clock on the kitchen counter. Sighing, she walked into her bedroom and climbed into bed. She set the necklace down on the table next to her and noticed a book. Picking it up, she thumbed through the pages and realized it was a story book.

The first story she felt compelled to read was about a puppet who wanted to become a real boy. Halfway through, after all of the smiles and childish jokes she read, she could hear the sweet lulling of a person snoring. Looking around, Lina found that it was still only her in her apartment.

She continued to read again, the deep snoring soon accompanied by a lighter snore which seemed to come from right next to her. She looked around her room and still couldn't pinpoint the origin of the snores. It seemed like she was remembering something. Or maybe she was just too tired to have her brain function correctly. She closed the book, retired it to the table next to her necklace, and drifted off into a deep sleep.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

_She walked down a lit hall, openings on either side allowing the sunlight to bathe her and her surroundings in warmth. There was a pair of double doors just ahead of her._

_She needed to go through them._

_She needed to know what was on the other side._

_Her footsteps echoed as she got closer and closer, her hands reaching out to push the doors open. Looking down, she saw a ring on her left hand. It was beautiful, the stone that was used for it the same as the one in her necklace._

_The doors opened at her touch and she found herself staring at a large throne room. A man sat in the largest chair, a golden haired man beside him, and a dark haired man on his other side. Each of them looked towards her, but their faces were nothing but a blur._

_The dark haired man stood up as to greet her. She felt a warmth inside her that was almost fire-like. It was passionate. It was love._

_She was smiling as she walked towards him._

_She could hear the bellowing laugh of the blonde-haired man as he watched the two of them start to greet one another._

_This place that she was in had a familiar feeling about it._

_This was home._

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

She woke. Her alarm wasn't ringing yet, although it would in a few minutes. The dream she had just had relaxed her. She was at ease today, unlike when she woke with a start the previous morning. It's possible that this was the first indication of her lost memory.

Or she just had a really amazing dream.

She got ready for her first day at S.H.I.E.L.D., her mind still wandering to the warm place she had seen the night before. What was that place? Who were those men? And where was that ring?

Not knowing what to expect during the course of her first day at her new job, Lina decided not to wear high heels again and pulled on a pair of black boots over her S.H.I.E.L.D. issued uniform pants. The whole uniform was black from top to bottom.

She pulled her hair into a bun, pinning back whatever stray hairs escaped.

Grabbing her necklace, she put it on and also grabbed her bag before heading out the door, down the stairs, and to the curb where she would await the dark car again.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

"It is much too risky," Odin stated, conversing with his eldest son in the throne room. He believed Thor to be mad when presented with the information Thor had gained from Heimdall.

"But there is a chance that—"

"That you will cause another uproar in Midgard? Yes. That this being may not be Lina and you'll cause problems that could have been avoided. Yes."

Thor looked away from his father's gaze in frustration.

"I'm sure this is also giving you another reason to visit this Jane Foster of yours." Odin leaned back and closed his eyes, his mind taking time to focus. "You should forget her. She is no good for you, and you have much better prospects here in Asgard."

"This is not about me," Thor bellowed, stepping towards his father. "This is for Loki."

Odin opened his eyes at the sound of his younger son's name. It had been a month since Loki had been sentenced to torture in the dungeons. It was odd that he hadn't heard any reports of Loki fighting back or trying to escape. Perhaps Loki had finally given up.

"Why?" he asked, returning his gaze to his son once more.

"Father?" Thor asked.

"Why do you wish to do this for Loki?"

Thor sighed as he shook his head in seeming disbelief. "I understand the grave dangers he put not only our realm in but all of the nine realms in," he began.

Odin continued to look at Thor, his face unchanging.

"But there has always been something that he was fighting for. There was always something that he had wanted more than power, more than a throne, more than anything; and it was her."

Odin nodded slightly. He too felt some form of grief when Lina had mysteriously gone missing in the night. He had found himself slowly getting attached to the girl. And anyone who could help Loki stay out of trouble and become happier than Odin had ever seen him in his life was someone that deserved his respect and his thanks.

"I want to find her and bring her back here." He sighed before pleading to his father with his crystal blue eyes. "I want to have my brother back once more."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Get these papers. Ask this person this. Get him coffee.

Lina figured her first month at S.H.I.E.L.D. would be something a little more interesting that what it had been. She didn't get to do anything related to saving people or hunting villains. She was Fury's little servant. If she wanted to get any shot at a real case, she had to follow his every order which annoyed her to no end. She was destined for bigger and better things.

Wasn't she?

"Agent Sparrow," the little voice in her earpiece called.

She touched her hand to the earpiece as she replied, "Yes, Director Fury."

"I have your first assignment ready for you in my office. Be here in five."

Her heart fluttered. "Yes, sir." She started to bubble with excitement. Her first real assignment. It was finally happening.

At the time, she had been in the break room getting Fury's coffee, also being in the company of Agent Maria Hill. She was Fury's right hand woman and had been a great help in Lina's transition to this new place.

Agent Hill saw Lina's excitement light up in her eyes. "First assignment?" she asked, a smile sprawled on her face.

"Is it that obvious?" Lina asked, returning the expression.

"Don't be late. You know how he doesn't like to be kept waiting."

Lina nodded as she grabbed the coffee and headed towards Director Fury's office. Each step quickened as her anxiousness increased. She wanted to know what was in store for her.

Soon she reached his office, Fury sitting at his desk as he played with a pen in his right hand. He was looking over a file that was sitting in front of him.

"Sit."

Lina did as she was told, setting his coffee down within his reach.

"What I am about to tell you doesn't leave this room," he coldly warned, setting the pen down and reaching for his coffee. He sipped it gingerly, taking in its full flavor.

Now that Lina had thought about it, it was probably the fifth or sixth coffee she had retrieved for him today and she had only started her shift three hours ago.

"Yes, sir," she replied, waiting for his next bit of information.

Fury sighed as he leaned back in his chair, studying Lina's face. She looked like a dog hoping for a treat for being such a good girl. Her eyes were wide with curiosity and wonder.

"We've been working on this project for many years and it hasn't really taken off until recently," he explained, closing the folder in front of him. He turned to another stack that was arranged neatly behind him, grabbed it, and placed it next to the original file he had been viewing. "It is not a simple project, it is not one that you can ignore even for a moment."

Lina shifted in her chair, taking in all of the information.

"You'll be asked to stay here at the facilities until such a time that you are removed from this assignment."

She nodded.

"And that's _if_ you're ever removed from this assignment."

"Whatever you need me to do, Director Fury, I'm ready for it."

"I'm sure you are. You've probably been annoyed with the fact that you haven't been doing much except busy work during this last month."

Lina looked down in shame. It was as if Fury had read her mind.

He took another sip of his coffee, seeming to make a final decision about whether or not Lina would be right for this assignment. She took orders well, rarely questioned authority, and started to show some of her skills a little more while she was there. One day she had prevented someone who was thought to be a spy from escaping with various classified documents by demonstrating some very extensive hand-to-hand combat.

There was something that intrigued him, though. When he asked her that day where she learned it from, her face had scrunched up. She told him she couldn't remember, but that she was glad that she knew it.

How could someone not know where they learned their skills from? Maybe it wasn't the tequila that made her forget.

Regardless of what she had been through prior to her employment with S.H.I.E.L.D., she was an indispensable asset that he wanted to keep close to him in case anything went wrong.

He leaned forward in his chair. Lina inhaled sharply as the room fell even more quiet than when she had walked in.

"I am assigning you to the Avengers Initiative."

**Liking it so far? :) Send me a review to let me know what you think!**

**To Dreams In Azure: Thanks for all of the compliments! It was suggested from my last story that I get more detail in so I've been trying to stick with that. Sometimes when I get on a roll I just word vomit my ideas without constructing the story nicely. Making sure I kinda take my time with this story. And yes, thank you for letting me know when you're publishing your story. I'm excited for it!**

**Also as a heads up, I'm starting up classes again so chapters might not be coming out until the weekends (if I'm not too busy studying). Thanks!**

**With love**

**-sparrowlina**


	4. Chapter 4

4—

He didn't even know how much time had gone by since his mother had visited him. He didn't know what day it was or what time it was.

The course of the last month hadn't been a kind one to Loki. Each time guards came down to his cell, there was a new torture or punishment to be had. One day it was plain brute force, which was the cause of his broken table when Frigga had come to visit, and another day it was getting whipped until he cried for mercy. The physical pain was one thing to deal with, but this last visit had proved too much for him.

_The guards didn't come down as they normally did. Instead he saw the lights flicker in his cell as he sat leaning against the wall recovering from the last physical number they had dealt to him. All at once it went dark. He inhaled sharply as he listened for any sounds of footsteps or objects moving around._

_It was then that he heard it: the most beautiful sound he had ever heard._

_Her voice._

_"Loki," she called out. It was soft, wanting, and sweet._

_The lights flickered on and off with haste, Loki barely catching a glimpse of the woman he yearned for._

_"Lina," he whispered, attempting to stand up. His knees buckled where he had been hit quite hard and he slipped back down to the floor again._

_The next time the lights had flickered, they stayed on, Lina appearing to be kneeling right before Loki._

_His eyes lit up with excitement, a smile spreading across his face. "Lina, my love, I—"_

_"How could you?" she asked him._

_His brow furrowed. "What?"_

_"How could you let them take me away? Did you not love me enough to keep me safe?" Her face was sad and hurt. Loki couldn't look away from her but each second that he continued to, his heart broke more and more._

_"I—I didn't want them to. I've been searching for years and I—"_

_"It's too late, Loki," she whispered. He watched as she stood up and backed away from him. "I hate you." Her tone changed abruptly to one that was angry. "I never want to see you again."_

_The lights shut off and back on once more leaving no trace of Lina to be seen._

His mind hadn't recovered from that blow, he still sitting on the floor in awe of what had happened. He couldn't remember how long he had cried after that incident but when he stopped, he felt numb inside. It was low, even for the All Father, to torture Loki like this and to attack him right where it would hurt the most.

Her eyes when she backed away from him haunted his mind. They were full of anger, no love left within them. The precious brown orbs that he enjoyed getting lost in showed him no favor. It was as if the perfect flower he had taken so much care of had wilted away, never to give him joy ever again.

A small noise in front of him told him he wasn't alone any longer. The tears that had started to run down his face again weren't even bothered with being wiped. Loki looked up towards the front of his cell to see Thor looking back at him.

As Thor looked at his brother, he started to see what his sentencing was putting him through. His clothes were tattered and blood stained, his body bruised and beginning to scar. Looking at his face, his once sly expression was one of defeat and sorrow. His eyes weren't full with life anymore. They were dull, tear tracks leading from them to his jawline.

"Nice of you to join me," Loki said, shifting his weight so could sit up more. He winced when he moved, assuming a rib or two had been broken. He studied his brother's expression as Thor walked around the fancy cage Loki was in to stand closer to his trapped brother.

"What have they done to you?" Thor asked, dreading what the response would be.

Loki smirked slightly. "You wouldn't want to know." The smirk slowly faded as he continued, "I don't think I'm going to last much longer in this cell with these tortures. I will go mad."

"Nobody said punishment was going to be an easy feat," Thor reminded, leaning his back against the wall behind him and sliding down to match his brother's seating position.

"And nobody said they were going to use the memory of Lina to bring my mind into a frenzy," Loki snapped, refocusing his stare on the ground in front of him.

Thor's jaw clenched. "I assume mother has come down to discuss the matter of Lina with you?"

Loki nodded. "It is a lost cause brother…"

Looking at Loki in disbelief, Thor suddenly bellowed, "Have you given up hope? Do you doubt that she is still alive?"

"Do not tell me what I have and have not given up hope in!" Loki shouted. His stare intensified at Thor. Just as suddenly, his face relaxed and he leaned his head against the wall behind him. He closed his eyes as tears crept down his face from the corners of them. "Thor, I have no doubt in my mind that she's alive and well somewhere. If I did have doubt, I wouldn't have continued to search for her."

"Or have gone completely mad with power while you were away," Thor added.

"That is beside the point," Loki spat. He looked back at his brother, eyes brimming with tears. "If I were to find her now, though, what would become of us? What do I have left to offer now that I am to stay here and be tortured?"

Thor looked away from his brother's troubled eyes. He didn't want to admit it, but Loki's logic was somewhat true. If Lina were to come back, all she would come back to is an empty bed every night and the worry that her fiancé wouldn't make it out of his punishment alive so that they could finally be happy together. He also guessed that Loki wouldn't want her to see him in the state he was in. Even Thor didn't want to see his brother the way he saw him now.

Out of nowhere, Loki continued to speak. "You know, the last time they tortured me they made her tell me that she hated me."

Thor looked down in anger. Loki had done bad things during Lina's 1,000 year absence, but there were some tortures that no one should have to go through.

"Do you think she does?" Loki asked.

"I highly doubt that it is so," Thor answered softly. "Brother," he continued.

Loki's eyes shot up to Thor's when he called him by that title. "You still want to call me that, after all that I have put you through?" he interrupted.

Thor nodded. "I have not forgiven you just yet, but you are still family to me. Nothing can ever change that. Whether or not you choose to accept it is entirely up to you."

Loki looked down at his fidgeting hands and then looked back up to Thor.

"As I was saying earlier, brother, I will be going to Midgard tomorrow to meet with Lord Fury and the rest of the Avengers clan to discuss a new threat they've noticed." Thor stood up and started to walk away from Loki, but stopped to return his gaze to him. "I will try to see if I can find her while I am there. I am not making any promises, though."

Loki's eyes were a little brighter, seeming to thank Thor without Loki uttering another word. He watched as his brother turned to his right and proceeded up the stairs and out of the dungeon.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

It was a waiting game now.

Lina's first task as part of the Avengers Initiative was to assemble the group back together. They had each gone their separate ways after the last attack on New York and tracking them down wasn't an easy task. She believed the hardest to get the message to was Thor considering he was all the way in some galaxy or realm or whatever it was he was from.

She probably should take note of that location.

Her new assignment required that she not only know everything about the Avengers, but to help advise them and take care of whatever they needed. A new threat was rising, but it was still too early to tell what kind of threat it was.

Fury had told Lina that a strong force was starting to spread around New York like a disease. People were going missing for long periods of time then suddenly being brought back to their homes without any memory of what had happened to them. It sounded like something out of a bad episode of "The Twilight Zone" (at least that's how Director Fury had put it. Lina didn't know what "The Twilight Zone" was but she played along with the reference).

The people who returned each had a strange symbol on their back. It wasn't something that was part of any known language on Earth. Fury recognized the type of symbol but couldn't put his finger on what language it was. He said he'd show it to her later when everyone would convene for the first debriefing.

As she waited for the first of the Avengers to arrive, Lina was in the facility's combat training room. She wanted to practice her hand-to-hand combat more frequently now that she had discovered her talents during the past month. She found herself facing off with another agent who had skills she _thought_ were greater than her own. Each of them dressed in a black shirt and shorts and covered shoes. Lina's hair was pulled back into a bun that was so tight it threatened to give her a facelift if it had been made any tighter. She had Agent Hill to thank for that.

She punched, he dodged, he punched, he dodged. Even though there was a lot of brute strength about him, Lina was much faster.

This seemed familiar to Lina. But why?

Distracted by her thoughts, the agent landed his fist square with Lina's jaw, knocking her backwards and causing her to fall on the floor. She bumped her head hard as she brought her hands to her face.

"Oh my god! Are you okay?" the agent asked. He was very nice-like for someone who was trying to majorly kick her ass only a few moments ago.

Lina sat up and rubbed her jaw for a little bit before finally replying, "I'll be fine. It's nothing to worry about."

"Should we practice something else?" he asked, concerned for Lina's injury.

"I think that'd be best," she replied, laughing off the incident. She walked across the room to a table that had many weapons on it. From guns to knives the table had it all. None of the weapons interested her, though, until she laid eyes on a bow.

She ran her fingers across the metal bow and the sleek bowstring. She picked it up and inspected it in all its glory.

"No one really uses that much anymore," the agent explained, joining Lina at the table. "No one unless you're Hawkeye of course."

Lina nodded, recognizing the name of one of the people she was supposed to be working with. "Why doesn't anyone want to use it?" she asked.

The agent shrugged. "I guess if you're not accurate enough with it, you're not really guaranteed a hit. Most people prefer guns for a long distance kind of thing."

Lina grabbed an arrow from the table and positioned herself with the bow, aiming at a target across the room. Without thinking, she pulled the arrow back on the bowstring and released. Instantly the arrow met the center of the target. It was a perfect shot.

"Huh," the agent commented. "You should ask Hawkeye for a challenge one day," he said as he grabbed his gym bag off of the floor. "You're pretty good with that thing."

"Thanks," Lina replied, grabbing more arrows to practice with. Something about this weapon made her very content. She was comfortable with it, as if she'd known how to use it all of her life. It was finally something that made sense.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Thor arrived at the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility in the usual fashion, clouds of dust being sent up in the front of the building as the Bifrost brought him down to Earth. His arrival brought stares from the people both inside and outside.

Ignoring the gazes, Thor walked towards the building and through the glass double doors in the front.

"Farthest away is the first to arrive," Fury commented to Thor as he greeted the Asgardian prince in the lobby area. He extended his hand out to the blonde haired god.

Thor took it warmly as he replied, "It is good to see you too, Lord Fury."

Nick sighed a little. They had been through this the last time Thor had been in New York: he didn't have to call him "Lord Fury".

"Well, since you're the first to arrive, we don't have much for you to do as of yet. If you want to just explore the new facility, you're more than welcome to. We're still getting your living quarters ready as we speak."

"Thank you," Thor replied.

Nick nodded curtly to the god and walked away in a hurry, an agent meeting him in stride to discuss other issues they had at hand.

Thor looked up and around at the place he was in. Midgardian structures fascinated him, their purposes and constructs being different than those of Asgard. He strolled through the various hallways and corridors, peering into every room that had a window for him to look through. Soon, though, he grew bored. He wanted something to do.

Maybe this place had a place for him to train in?

He began to search through the facility with more purpose than before. His ears heard his goal before his eyes could find it. The contact of an arrow to a target was a familiar sound to the warrior and he found his feet following the sound his ears had discovered.

Right. Left. Right.

Each turn brought him closer to the room he was searching for. Eventually he found a door with a bright sign on the outside that flashed "TRAINING IN PROGRESS". It was put there as a warning in case there were any projectiles flying across the room that threatened to hurt anyone who decided to enter mid-practice. There was a rectangular window inlaid into the door that allowed anyone to look inside.

Curiosity getting the best of him, Thor looked inside to see who was dealing so much damage with a bow and arrow.

His breath cut short for a moment. His eyes widened. His heart seemed to stop just for a moment.

1,000 years hadn't changed her one bit.

**Hope you enjoyed it! Wonder what's gonna happen next... :) Please send me a review!**

**With love,**

**sparrowlina**


	5. Chapter 5

5—

All at once, Thor's excitement got the best of him.

He charged through the doorway while the archer in the training room was right about to release her arrow. He swooped in, dropped his hammer on the floor, and scooped her into a large hug from behind.

"I can't believe I finally found you!" he exclaimed. "My brother will be so happy! I'm so happy!"

He felt the small figure in his arms squirm around in protest, a grunt or two being released.

"Come now, are you not happy to see me?" He set the girl down and immediately froze.

"I don't know who you think I am, buddy," the girl snapped, "but don't _ever_ do that again."

He had been very mistaken. This girl was not Lina. He watched as she gathered her things and walked past him angrily, mumbling something under her breath about him being a Barbie and ripping his head off. He stood there slightly defeated, scolding himself for thinking it would be that easy to find her. He'd only been in Midgard for ten minutes, what did he expect?

"Um…Mr. Thor…sir?" he heard a soft voice call from behind him.

Lina had watched the entire ordeal and felt an immediate shared embarrassment for the god. She had just gotten back from her room. She wanted to shower and get ready before the rest of the Avengers had arrived. Agent Hill had alerted her that Thor had just come and he was roaming around somewhere in the facility.

He turned towards the door and immediately felt his heart falter. Now he knew he had really found her. But why wasn't she happy to see him?

"Yes, my lady?" he replied, walking towards the petite princess.

"I'm Lina Sparrow," she introduced, holding out her hand. "I'll be working with you as part of the Avengers Initiative."

He took her hand lightly and kissed her knuckles. He watched her eyes carefully as he felt her tense under his touch. Her eyes showed no happiness, no remembrance, and no light that it used to before.

"It is nice to meet you, Miss Sparrow," he replied. In his head, though, it partly wasn't. This wasn't the person he had grown to love and care for over the years, nor was it the person his brother had fallen head over heels for. This was his not the person who was supposed to become his brother's wife. Thor knew that if Loki ever found out about her condition, he would be devastated. The realms would threaten to cave in on Loki's world all over again. Thor didn't want to put him through that for a second time.

Lina stared up at Thor. He was tall, handsome, and very well built. He was just as everyone described him and yet, he wasn't. She felt that she knew more about him, more than he'd want to admit. She felt like she had known him for quite some time, his friendly gaze seeming to try and make its way from her eyes straight to her heart. But it was a silly thought. Why would the god of thunder want to meddle in her affairs?

"If you'll follow me," she finally stammered out, "I'll show you to the conference room. Mr. Rogers and Mr. Stark are already waiting as well."

Thor nodded and followed Lina out of the room, being sure to keep close.

Even though she couldn't remember who he was anymore, there was no way that he was going to risk losing her again.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Loki curled up on the ground as the guards left his cell once again. His body ached and screamed at him. His once beautifully tamed locks were now wildly covering his face. He was bleeding quite badly in comparison to other times, his limited magic unable to fully heal him as it had in the past. He was vulnerable and felt hopeless. He wanted to die.

Frigga had finally decided it was time to visit Loki once more. She was hesitant in previous times because she was afraid to see what this punishment had done to her little boy. The last thing she wanted to see was something that she couldn't erase from her mind. She wanted to see her boy stay strong and be able to face whatever the All Father had put him through. She knew that's what he was capable of.

Her footsteps echoed through the dungeons as she reached her son's cell. Her eyes wouldn't leave the figure that she saw on the ground. Her worst fears had become a reality.

"Oh, my boy," she said, tears running down her face as she penetrated through the cell's wall and scooped Loki up into her arms.

He winced as he adjusted to the new position that he was in, his head now being cradled in the crook of Frigga's arm and his body resting against hers. "Mother," he whimpered.

"Shh," she shushed, stroking his hair away from his head. "Don't say anything. I'm here. I've got you," she soothed.

She tried to fix whatever broken bones she could. It would take time for them to mend, but at least she could give them a head start. The scars that he now held she knew wouldn't go away. They were reminders of his punishment that were to be etched on him like writing to a stone.

His eyes fluttered closed as he finally relaxed into his mother. He knew she wasn't an illusion. He knew that, for the time being, he was safe. "Mummy," he whispered.

Tears fell more freely from her eyes now. She hadn't heard him call her that in years. The only time that she ever remembered him calling her that, in fact, was when he was most scared—when he was unsure of what to do and he was close to giving up. "Shh my love. You'll be okay. Mummy's here."

"Make it all stop. Make the torture stop. Make the illusions stop."

Frigga closed her eyes and sighed. "I'm sorry, love. I'm not sure if I can."

He tensed in her arms and soon, she felt him start to cry. He wasn't just letting out a few tears. It was a painful cry that she knew he had been holding in not only for the duration of his punishment, but since that day that Lina had disappeared from his life.

"I don't want to live anymore," he mumbled through the tears.

"You listen to me," she said, making Loki look into her eyes. Her glistened eyes nearly matched his, both sharing the pain. "You are a strong man, Loki. You have never been one to simply give up. Do you want to get out of here? Do you want to find her?"

He nodded like a small child.

"Then you need to keep hope alive in your mind," she continued, pointing to the middle of his forehead, "and your heart." She rested her hand on his chest. "I believe in you, Loki, and so does your brother. Have faith. It will take you to your dreams and beyond. I promise you that." Her voice had started to crack, the will to cry increasing as the water pushed against her eyes.

Loki had let the dam break loose and he was crying hard once more, wrapping an arm around his mother and letting out all of his frustrations, fears, and anxieties.

After Frigga had let out her fair share of tears, she continued to hold Loki close and started to rock back at forth. It was something she did for him when he was a young boy. Then she started to sing an old Asgardian lullaby.

Loki's mind started to settle, the soothing sound of his mother's voice relaxing him. Eventually, he let a wave of exhaustion finally rush over him, sending him off into a deep, well deserved sleep.

They were not alone.

As Frigga rocked Loki to sleep, Odin watched from the shadows. He had followed Frigga down to the dungeons to see what she was up to. He watched his son's collapse in strength in both the mind and body and started to feel a pang of guilt rise up within him.

Lost in his thoughts, he started to ascend up the stairs before his wife found him. He was going to arrange a hearing when Thor returned.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

The conference room was filled with the heroes of S.H.I.E.L.D. catching up with one another after their much needed break from saving lives. Tony and Bruce were talking up some kind of science on one end of the room, Thor was laughing at a joke Steve had told him, and Natasha and Clint were sitting observing the room of people.

Fury walked in hurriedly, Lina and Agent Hill right on his heels. "Okay, everyone," he began, standing at the large metal table that Steve and Thor were sitting at. "If you could all take a seat, I'd like to get started."

"Missed us that much, huh?" Tony commented, pulling up a chair opposite of Thor.

"You especially, Tony," Fury replied, smirking at Tony. "We've received notice that people in New York have been going missing recently."

"Don't people disappear from here all the time?" Steve asked, his eyes drifting from Fury to Lina. He hadn't locked eyes with a woman like this since he had lost his love all those many years ago. This girl was absolutely beautiful.

Lina's face turned a slight shade of pink when she looked at Steve Rogers. He was _the_ Captain America and he was paying her a second glance. She looked away from him when she noticed Thor glaring at the back of Steve's head.

"Usually, yes," Agent Hill continued, walking over to a screen and starting to pull up images for the case on it. "These people have been returning home, though, with no memory of what happened to them while they were gone."

"And on top of that," Fury continued, walking around to meet Agent Hill at the screen, "they came back with this symbol on their backs."

Agent Hill enlarged a symbol on the screen, everyone in the room studying it. It was an old looking symbol that didn't look like any known language from Earth.

"Do we know anything else about it?" Bruce asked, putting on his glasses to further inspect the symbol.

"Nothing further. Just the disappearances and these symbols."

"Agent Sparrow will be researching a bit more in depth in here if anyone would like to join her," Fury added, gesturing to Lina. "She's new. I like her. Be nice."

Lina shook her head as she walked out of the room and returned with a large stack of files on old languages. "I've compiled all of these old languages so far in terms of our world and beyond."

"Beyond?" Steve asked, grabbing the first file and starting to sift through the information.

"Yes," she replied. "Once Thor had been sent to Earth, we knew that there were many worlds out there that we didn't know about and we've been trying to collect data on them ever since. These are only some of the languages we were able to find." She turned to face Thor. "Do you think that you could get us information regarding the other languages we don't have here?"

Thor nodded and added, "My brother might have some information regarding all of these languages. He is much more knowledgeable that I am."

Natasha rolled her eyes and the rest of the group became uncomfortable at the mention of Loki.

"Is he really going to help you?" Bruce added, remembering back to the time where he had smashed Loki up and down Stark Tower like he was some kind of child's toy.

Thor nodded and sighed. "He's been going through a very…thorough punishment in Asgard. I am quite sure he will show a change of heart if he were to return here and aid us with this mission."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Hours later, only Lina, Steve, Thor, and Fury were left looking through the files. Everyone else had either gone to bed, gone to training, or were roaming around getting familiar with the new facilities.

Coffee cups were scattered all over the table. Lina had just come back with a fresh pot's worth, setting down a cup for each man. She returned to her seat that was next to Steve's and reached for a new folder to look over.

Still reading the folder he held in his hand, Steve blindly reached out for a new one, his hand and Lina's touching.

She froze. Captain America was holding her hand.

She looked at him in a slight state of panic, his face showing the same surprise. He smiled slightly at her, absorbing her bright brown eyes in his.

She blushed, her hand still resting under his.

Thor watched the scene play out and had enough of what he saw. He stood up, walked around the table, and pulled Steve's chair away from Lina. "I would not advise you to continue this behavior," he threatened, his glare intent on Steve's eyes.

Lina stood up suddenly and walked to the god, pulling on his shoulder to make him face her. "What is your problem?" she asked.

He looked down at her features. Her gaze hurt him, her eyes staring at him still as if he were a stranger. As he studied her face, his eyes wandered down to the jewelry she had on her neck. "Where did you get this from?" he asked, touching the emerald that dangled from the silver chain.

Pulling away from him, Lina panicked. She didn't know the answer and she wasn't going to outright admit that. "It was a gift from my mother," she lied.

He saw it: the panic. He knew she was lying. There was hope.

"What in the hell," Fury asked, "is wrong with you two? Do you know each other from somewhere?"

Lina looked quickly from Steve to Thor to Fury and then back to Thor.

"No," he replied, turning away from Lina and walking over to the large window that overlooked the first floor of the S.H.I.E.L.D. operations room. "There's nothing wrong."

"Sparrow, you're done for tonight. You too, Rogers," Fury decided. "Go to sleep and we'll pick this back up in the morning."

Lina wasted no time walking back to her quarters, embarrassed by what had gone on.

It was only Thor and Fury in the room now, the silence becoming deafening.

Fury was the first to speak, walking up next to Thor. He began, "So, what are you not telling me about our Miss Sparrow?"

**Hope you liked it a lot! Might be releasing one more chapter this weekend pending homework. Gotta love that college life. And big thanks to Chelsea Di Marco Macbeth for being my lifesaver and helping me brainstorm through this chapter (and the next lol).**

**Dreams In Azure: I think things will probably get worse before they get better for him. Only way to find out is to read :) As far as Lina's memories though, it'll be an interesting way haha. Thank you for your continued support and I hope to hear more from you! :)**

**Chelsea Di Marco Macbeth: How's it going so far? I changed some of our original brainstorm ideas but it's mostly all there. Hope you liked :)**

**Lemme know how you like it!**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	6. Chapter 6

6—

Thor sighed and looked at Fury with eyes full of exhaustion. "It is nothing, Lord Fury; another story for another day." He began to walk towards the door when Fury's voice broke the silence once again.

"She's got some major gifts," he said, sitting down once more at the table. "And she has no idea where or when she learned them from."

Thor stopped in his tracks and listened more intently.

"She told me at her interview that she wanted to learn about who she was. I had always thought it was some kind of kiss-up act but now, I'm thinking it's a little more than that."

Thor turned around to face Fury once more. "What else has happened since she was hired?"

Fury gestured to the seat in front of him and Thor obliged. "Well, she did use some pretty extensive hand-to-hand combat earlier this month. One of my agents also said that she could give Hawkeye a run for his money with a bow. She also seems to be getting increasingly frustrated by the day with something she won't talk to anyone about." Fury picked up a pen and started to twirl it around his fingers. "Usually, I fire people who have too much baggage. But her…"

"There is something you might need to know," Thor admitted, staring down at the table, "but I fear you won't like what you're going to hear."

Fury leaned forward. "Try me."

Thor took in a deep breath and began to tell Fury of how Lina had disappeared 1,000 years ago from Loki's arms and how they had searched high and low in the realms to find her. He explained Loki's pain and how it had turned him into the person who had attacked Midgard and how Loki's torture was starting to affect his hope. Thor then explained how when he had first seen Lina, she didn't recognize him but when he mentioned the necklace, he could see the lie in her eyes.

"And what's so important about the necklace?" Fury asked.

"It was a gift from my brother to her the night that they had finally admitted that they loved one another."

Fury nodded. "How romantic," he added, slight disgust running through his tones. "Are you sure that your brother won't be a liability if you bring him here to help us?"

Thor sat up with alertness. "Well, I am almost certain that if he got the chance to see Lina, he would be willing to help us with whatever he needs. And I'm sure he is a changed man as of late."

Fury nodded and looked down at the pen again then back up to Thor's eager eyes. "How soon can you bring him here?"

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Lina sat in her bed wide eyed and unable to sleep. She wasn't sure if it was the encounter she had just had or if it was the immense amount of coffee she had ingested while she was researching.

Sitting up, she looked around her quarters and felt a sudden rush of sadness overwhelm her. Why did this Thor person have so much of a hold on her? She couldn't shake his familiarity or how he got so defensive with her, as if he had also shared the same kind of feeling.

A soft knock on the door took Lina out of her thoughts.

She stood up and walked over to the door. Agent Hill stood on the other side holding a tray with two mugs on it. "Hot chocolate?" she offered.

Lina smiled and moved on the side for her to enter. "Thanks."

Maria smiled and made her way into the room, setting the tray down on a table that was adjacent to Lina's bed. She moved some of the files on the side so that they wouldn't get spilled on. "So how's everything going?"

Lina shrugged as she sat on the bed. "I'm not entirely sure. I feel like I'm causing problems and I haven't even been with these guys for one day…"

Maria added extra marshmallows to Lina's hot chocolate before handing her the mug. "What's got you all strung up over the god anyway?"

Lina shifted uncomfortably. There were a million and one reasons to not say anything about it, but she needed to talk to someone at some point. "You'd think I'm crazy."

"I've been working with S.H.I.E.L.D. all these years, witnessed a demigod destroy New York, and have seen a regular looking scientist become a large green thing that resembles the Green Giant on my cans of corn; I think I can handle what you're going to tell me."

Lina sighed and started to gather her thoughts. "Okay…well…on the day of my interview, I woke up and didn't have any recollection of my life. All I knew was that I had to go to an interview for S.H.I.E.L.D. and that this necklace was the most important thing to not leave behind."

From there Lina explained her story of having lapses in memory, having vivid dreams, and her encounters with Thor.

Maria listened intently, trying to piece everything together.

When Lina finished, Maria said, "Hm."

"Hm?" Lina asked. "Hm? I spill my entire life story and all you can say is 'Hm'?"

"Hey calm down," Maria defended. "It's a lot to take in. Maybe you can ask Fury about it tomorrow."

"No," Lina interjected. "I can't tell Fury about this. I might lose my job."

"I think if he doesn't hear it from you, you'll probably have a higher chance of losing your job anyway."

Lina groaned as she set down her now finished mug of hot chocolate and collapsed onto her pillows. Everything was getting more and more complicated with each moment that passed.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

The next day, Lina awoke abruptly. Fury was shaking her awake.

"Dammit, Sparrow, you're harder to wake up than Banner after he returns to normal size," he commented, walking to the other side of the room once Lina had opened her eyes.

"Sir?" she asked, yawning and sitting up in her bed. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes and no. Thor is leaving to go back to Asgard this morning. After he leaves, we have some issues to discuss. He'll be returning this evening, hopefully with a source that'll help us through this case." Fury looked at Lina as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. "Get dressed. Be at the conference room in 5." He rushed out, leaving Lina confused and more tired than she had been before.

She hadn't gotten much sleep after she vented to Agent Hill about what she could remember about her life. She'd kept having the same dream about walking into a throne room but now, Thor was the blonde haired man laughing about her encounter with the man with black hair. Was this a missing piece to the ever complicating puzzle that was her memory? Or was she so caught up in her current situation that her mind was just placing his face in her dreams?

Either way she didn't have time to figure it out. She quickly got dressed, pulled her hair back into a ponytail, and rushed to the conference room, one minute to spare.

"Agent Sparrow, tell Thor everything you need from him while he's in Asgard so that he knows what to bring back," Fury directed.

Thor was sitting at the same table from the previous night, he too looking like he was at a loss for sleep. His bright eyes looked at Lina hopefully as she made her way to the table.

"Um…I'm sorry about last night," she apologized. She fidgeted with her hands as she stood in front of the god.

"It is all right," he replied, smiling at her. "No harm done."

Lina sighed with relief as she cleared her mind. "Okay…um…it would be good to get some books on the various languages of the realms. If you have someone who can read many languages, I'd like for them to come so that they can help us interpret. It may be good to bring someone who's generally well read on the nine realms as well."

"I know just the person," Thor replied. He stood up and faced Fury. "I'll be back soon." With that, Thor turned on his heel and exited the room, returning outside for Heimdall to bring him home through the Bifrost.

Fury turned to face Lina after they watched Thor leave through the various colored lights outside. "So, you wanna tell me anything, Sparrow?"

Lina was now sitting where Thor had been sitting, Fury across the table from her. He leaned against the table with his hands resting on the sleek surface. His eyes were fixed on hers, determined not to let her blink. He wanted the truth, and he wanted it now.

"What do you mean?" she asked. Did Maria squeal on her?

"I had a talk with Thor last night," he began, "and a talk with Agent Hill this morning."

Lina sighed. She had been right. But Maria was probably right in telling Fury. Maybe he could help Lina out after all.

"And what did they tell you?"

"Maria told me about your dreams and your lack of memory," he started, strolling back over to the window to overlook the floor.

"I told you it wasn't the vodka," she mumbled.

"I heard that," Fury said, turning his head to her. "Thor told me about who you are."

Her eyes grew wide. "He did?"

"But it's no good if he tells me," Fury continued, ignoring her question, "if you can't remember for yourself." He walked back over to the table and sat in front of her, leaning forward. "Now, Miss Sparrow," he continued, his voice low and intense. "From this point forward, there can be no more lies. You're compromising this initiative and this agency if you conceal your identity from us. Do you understand?"

Lina nodded. She felt like a toddler being scolded by her parent.

Fury sighed as he studied Lina's features. He knew who she was. That's why she had been so familiar to him when he saw her picture. When Thor had first arrived, Fury had read up on Norse mythology and had read of the woman who disappeared from the life of the God of Mischief. She was beautiful, cunning, and destined to be a queen. Her disappearance had devastated the dark prince and left him to his own devices, causing him to become the evil prince they had all witnessed.

She was a living legend.

But she had no idea.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Thor arrived through the Bifrost and greeted Heimdall warmly.

"That looks like the face of success," Heimdall commented, smiling at the prince.

"It is a face of almost success," Thor replied. "Do you know where my father is?"

Heimdall straightened himself as he replied, "He is holding a hearing for your brother soon. If you go now, you'll make it to the castle in time."

"Thank you Heimdall." Thor walked briskly to the castle, his skin taking in the rays of the Asgardian sunlight that told him he was home. He bounded up the various stairs, wove through the many halls, and soon found himself opening the doors to the throne room, his father already waiting.

"Welcome home," Odin began. "When were you going to tell me you were leaving?"

"My apologies, father," Thor replied. "There was a matter with Lord Fury and the Avengers that I needed to be present for. I'll be returning to Midgard this evening to continue assisting them if it is alright with you."

"Yes, yes," Odin said, brushing off the matter. "Please sit, the hearing is about to begin."

Thor nodded and resumed his position next to his father's throne.

Frigga walked in, looked at Thor, and smiled. She looked more alive today than normal, as if she had read Thor's mind as to the whereabouts of Lina.

"Had a pleasant time in Midgard?" she asked him.

"Yes and no, Mother," he replied as she walked to the other side of Odin.

Soon, the room grew quiet again, the only sound being the echoing chains of a prisoner coming out from the dungeons.

The doors opened to the throne room and Thor's mouth dropped open in surprise. Whatever had happened to Loki since his last visit had not done him well. He immediately regretted leaving his brother to the demise that was sentenced to him.

Loki didn't walk in stride with the guards. He partially limped and continuously held his left side, his face expressing all of the pain he had endured in the dungeons. Blood still stained his clothes, but his eyes looked a little brighter when he saw Thor. After what seemed like an eternity, he and the guards had made it to the front of Odin's throne.

"Loki Laufeyson," Odin began. "You have served some time in the dungeons and have been exposed to many torturous events. I witnessed, the other evening, you sitting with Queen Frigga after one of your tortures."

Frigga's eyes widened, not knowing Odin had seen her exchange with Loki the other evening.

"I apologize for visiting him. I just—"

"Silence," Odin commanded his wife. His gaze returned to Loki, who was looking at him with concerned eyes. His silver tongue had turned to lead.

"Do not blame her," Loki finally started, stepping towards Odin. "She was just trying to comfort her son."

"And you consider her to be your mother?" Odin asked surprisingly.

Loki looked towards Frigga as he said, "She's the closest thing I've got to one."

Odin nodded as he sighed. "I called this hearing today, Loki, to…apologize for my actions in the past."

Loki's eyes widened as he returned his gaze to Odin. Every pair of eyes were on the All Father.

"I understand what had driven you to your actions and I realize my role in all of it. I understand what you long for most in this life and I am willing to help you get it. You must, though, vow to keep your actions and intentions pure for the rest of your days."

Loki nodded, watching Odin's expression full of guilt.

"You are released from your imprisonment. Consider your sentence fulfilled."

The guards looked at each other in confusion before finally undoing the shackles around Loki's wrists, ankles, and neck then leaving the room.

Rubbing his wrists, he looked back up at Odin once more. "Thank you," he said. "I promise not to let you down."

"You had better not," Odin replied as he walked out of the room.

Frigga followed her husband, but first stopped to kiss Loki on the cheek and smile at him. She was proud of her son for not giving up. He could now fight his fight and get back what he truly wanted.

After Odin and Frigga left, only Thor and Loki remained in the room.

The silence was deafening. Thor walked over to Loki, Loki looking at the floor to avoid his brother's gaze.

Thor rested is hands on Loki's shoulders, causing Loki to look up at him. "Brother," Thor said, a smile starting to spread on his face. "It's good to have you back."

Loki smirked slightly, feeling genuine comradery emanating from Thor. "It's good to be back."

Thor wrapped an arm around Loki's waist to support him and brought Loki's arm over his own shoulders. "Let's get you cleaned up, and then we're going to Midgard. I have something to show you."

**Thoughts? :)**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	7. Chapter 7

7—

The walk to the Bifrost seemed longer than normal, Loki trying very valiantly to keep up with Thor. His brother's strides had quickened and lengthened as his excitement of returning to Earth was enveloping him. He was excited to reunite his brother with Lina. He wanted to see the look on Lina's face when she saw Loki. He wanted her to remember.

Thor had told Loki of his encounters with the princess the night before. Loki had drunk in every word like it was the most addicting thing in all of the nine realms. To hear that his love was alive and well made him swell with happiness. There was hope for them yet. His mind wandered to the ring that he was wearing on a silver chain around his neck, its weight feeling infinite.

The two brothers reached the golden dome to be greeted by Heimdall.

"Nice to see you both getting along nicely," he commented, beaming at the two men.

Thor smiled brightly and looked at Loki. A smirk had started to grow on Loki's face, but he didn't let it widen to anything more than that. He nodded and turned his attention to the opening of the Bifrost.

"How is she?" he asked Heimdall.

Heimdall followed Loki's gaze and sighed. "Good and bad. I am just very relieved to have her in my sights again."

Loki looked towards him curiously as he asked, "Why is she good and bad?" He was more concerned with the "bad" part of the sentence. Was she hurt?

"It is nothing, my lord." With that, Heimdall placed his sword in its place, allowing the Bifrost to open.

Thor took a deep breath and walked towards Loki. "Are you ready?"

Without saying a word, Loki stepped through.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

The cheerful tunes of the 1940s rang through the hall down to where Lina was standing and talking to Agent Romanoff. She looked towards where the music was coming from, seeing that the door to the conference room she had been researching in earlier was open.

"I think Steve is in there," Natasha said, following Lina's curious gaze.

"Huh?" Lina replied, snapping out of her trance.

"Steve," Natasha repeated. She then pointed towards the room's open door. "Down there."

Lina nodded in understanding and blushed slightly. "Will you excuse me?"

Natasha nodded and smiled briefly before turning and walking to the main lobby area.

Lina followed the music down the hall and peered into the room where, as expected, Steve was sitting. He was looking through the newer files Lina had made. She had to admire his dedication to his job. He never let anything slip past him except for the occasional new aged reference. She didn't understand half of those either, so at least he wasn't alone.

"Knock, knock," Lina said, opening the door and walking in.

Steve looked up and smiled. "Nice of you to stop by."

She strolled over to the table and leaned against it, her hands resting on either of the two sides. "I heard the music and figured I'd come see what you were up to. I thought you were going to be training today."

"I was," he replied, leaning back in his chair. "I figured updating myself was more important."

Lina nodded as she looked around at all of the papers. Her head had been in a million different places since Fury had confronted her the day before. It bothered her that he had the privilege of knowing who she was and who she was supposed to be when she had no idea what her life was even about. What bothered her more was that his source was Thor. How could he know such important information? What if he was lying?

"You seem bothered by something," Steve interrupted, staring at Lina with longing eyes.

She looked up and immediately got lost in his eyes. They were full and curious, like a young boy's.

"It's nothing," she said. She walked towards the speakers and system that was playing the 1940s music. "Been reminiscing I hear?"

He smiled as he stood up and joined her. "I can't really say I've gotten used to the music that's popular today. I'm a sucker for the classics."

Lina nodded as she continued listening.

Steve looked around nervously. He shifted his weight a few times from foot to foot, his palms getting sweaty. He was like a young boy at his first dance: the girl he wanted to dance with just within reach and all he had to do was ask her.

"D…Do you dance?" he asked.

Lina looked up at him and shook her head. "I don't remember ever really dancing before. You?"

He looked away and shook his head. "I was supposed to learn, but…I never made it to her."

Lina nodded understandingly as she studied his face. "Do you wanna learn together?"

Steve looked towards her and smiled. "Alright," he agreed.

Taking her hand in his, he pulled her more towards the open portion of the room. She stood in front of him and he placed his hand on her waist. Like magic, the couple started to move in sync with the beat nicely, their steps matching and their bodies starting to relax as they got more comfortable with their abilities.

Lina started laughing and Steve couldn't stop smiling. She looked back into his eyes and noticed they were a lot brighter than a few moments before. Her heart was beating fast not only because of the extra exercise, but because Steve's presence made her feel that way. She had never noticed how strong he could be, but how gentle he really was. He was a gentleman, and his smile was lighting up the room. Could it be that they could—

"Excuse me," a firm voice cut in.

Steve and Lina pulled away from each other and stopped dancing, facing the door where the voice had come from. Their once agile bodies suddenly turned rigid. The music continued to play in the background and filled the awkward silence that had now developed between the group of people.

Director Fury stood at the door, amusement being the last emotion that was on his face. His expression was as hard as stone, his stance unwavering as his arms crossed over his chest.

After a few more seconds of silence, Nick started to speak. "I'm not going to ask you anything. I'm not expecting this to happen again. We have company." His voice was firm and both Lina and Steve know he meant business.

"Yes sir," they both replied in unison. Lina then turned to start gathering up the papers that were strewn all over the glass table behind her while Steve turned off the music that was still echoing through the halls.

As they did that, Fury moved on the side to allow both Thor and Loki to walk in.

Lina looked up at the two men and instantly froze, her hands letting slip every paper that she held.

"Dammit, Sparrow," Fury mumbled, shaking his head as he walked over to the window behind her.

She ignored him as her eyes flitted from Steve to Thor to this new man that she had never seen before.

Whatever feeling she felt with Steve a few minutes ago was nothing compared to the way she felt at that very moment. Her heart was beating at a million beats a minute. Her hands began to shake out of nervousness. Her stomach was full of butterflies.

Originally, Loki and Thor had walked into the room glaring at Steve. Anyone who desired to have intentions with Lina was not to be easily allowed to do so, especially when her fiancé was in the room. Soon after, though, they laid eyes on Lina. Thor had stepped off to the side and leaned against a wall parallel to the table.

Loki was unable to move or speak. After 1,000 years, there she was. She hadn't aged a day from their last meeting, her eyes still the bright brown orbs he remembered gazing into. Her features were still soft with kindness. She was everything he remembered and more.

They stood drinking in each other's appearances for a while, Thor and Fury understanding why they needed this time to re-meet each other.

Steve stood very apprehensively. He didn't like the idea of Loki returning to Earth after what had happened in New York. He wasn't his favorite person and the fact that he had so much of an impact on his newfound crush was not sitting well.

Thor noticed Steve's stance and placed a hand on his shoulder. The look he gave to Steve told him that he'd explain everything later.

Natasha, Clint, Tony, and Bruce all made their way into the room after hearing from Fury that Thor had returned with Loki, soon encountering the silence that had taken over. There was a tension that started to build as all eyes were on Loki and the girl who was frozen by his presence. The other Avengers weren't sure if he had cast a spell on her already or if she was so petrified to see him that she couldn't move.

"Miss Sparrow," Thor finally said, removing himself from his spot on the wall and walking towards his brother. He brought his arm around Loki and placed a hand on his shoulder. "This is my brother, Loki Laufeyson. He is the person I told you was going to be our resource. He knows everything that you requested of me before I left yesterday."

Lina nodded, her mind still in a daze and her eyes still on Loki's.

She snapped out of it when she heard Thor chuckle. Shaking her head, she gathered the files from the floor and placed them back on the table. Lina turned towards Loki and held out her hand. "Lina Sparrow. I'm the agent assigned to the Avengers Initiative and the lead researcher on this case."

Suddenly, it hit her like a brick as to why all of these heroes in the room were looking at Loki the way they were. He was the reason they had all come together in the first place. The death, the destruction, the Coulson…he was the reason for all of that. Yet, she wasn't afraid of him. She wasn't upset with him. She didn't even feel curious about who he was. He was familiar. Lina felt that she had been reunited with someone she had once felt great feelings for. Those feelings were definitely rushing back to her all at once.

Recalling the dream she kept having, she also recognized Loki as the dark-haired man that Thor (or who she thought to be Thor) was laughing at when she would enter the throne room. For once, she had a complete memory, even if she didn't know if it was real or not. It was something for her to hold onto.

"Shouldn't keep a lady waiting, oh Prince of Darkness," Tony called out.

Loki seemed to snap out of his daze as well. He looked back towards Tony but instead of glaring at him, he smirked casually. "Still waiting for that drink, sir."

Tony smirked, remembering the last exchange they had in Stark Tower. "If you're all done being bad and playing 'King of the World', I'd be happy to oblige. Well…not happy but it'd be a step in the right direction, I think."

Turning back to Lina, Loki started to walk towards her.

Her heart caught in her throat as he grew closer, Loki soon towering over the small girl. She felt like she couldn't breathe.

"Pleased to meet you, Miss Sparrow," Loki said to her, his voice like silk. He reached for her hand, aiming to press his lips to her knuckles.

Bright light.

Everyone had been knocked off of their feet and sent crashing into the walls, but none harder than Loki and Lina.

As soon as his skin touched hers, something happened that no one was expecting.

Everyone was groaning on the ground, recovering from the blow. Fury was the first to stand up, leaning against the table for support. Natasha was rubbing the back of her head as the shock pounded through her it. Clint had crawled over to her to see if she was alright.

Tony and Bruce sat leaning against the wall and had their eyes closed. "A little warning next time would be nice," Tony mumbled, wincing from the pain.

Steve groaned as he laid face up on the floor, his nose starting to bleed from the impact with the wall.

Thor shook the impact from his head as he stood up, immediately heading for Loki who was curled up on the ground holding his head with both hands.

In that moment, his mind had been flooded with various images of what Lina had been through while she was on Earth. He saw things like her interview, her reading the story of "Pinocchio" to herself in her bedroom, the tears she shed for her memories, and her encounter with Thor. Everything that she had to endure showed themselves to Loki within mere seconds, sending his mind into a frenzy.

"Loki," Thor said, his voice extremely concerned. He knelt next to his brother, unsure of what to do for him.

"I'm fine," Loki mumbled, eventually sitting up as the pain in his head subsided. He looked around the room to everyone's looks of pain and concern. Papers were everywhere and most of the objects were broken. "Where's Lina?" he asked, panic starting to rise within him. Everyone looked towards one another as if taking a mental headcount.

Loki looked to where she was originally standing and couldn't help but notice that the glass window that was behind her had been shattered by the energy that he and Lina had created. He stumbled over to the now open area and looked down towards the main floor. Glass shards were everywhere and people were looking up towards the room.

Their gazes didn't long, though.

Agents were soon rushing to one area just below him. Sprawled on the ground clutching her head was his little flower, screaming in pain.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

He felt it. She was trying to break her mental bonds.

Chuckling, he walked over to the other side of the room he was in to stare out the window. His view was mainly of the various swirling galaxies; an eyeful for anyone who didn't get that kind of view every day.

With a flick of his wrist, an image appeared out of thin air. It was Lina, writhing in agony on the ground as various people flocked to her at the sound of her screams.

"Foolish girl," he mumbled.

**Dreams in Azure: Yes, I've been trying to stick some cute things in there every once in awhile. Helps to bring out some personality in these characters :) And yes! Odin finally is being nice hehe. I'm glad you're such an avid supporter of the story! :)**

**Hope you all enjoy the chapter :) It's not as substance-y as the others but I'm trying not to let aaaaaall the good stuff out in one chapter :P**

**Can't wait to hear from you folks!**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	8. Chapter 8

8—

Loki didn't waste any time getting to her. He braced himself with one hand and hurled himself over the window ledge and landed on the floor, agents scurrying out of his way as he did so. He stumbled over to Lina and knelt by her side.

She was crying, holding both sides of her head, and screaming in agony. Whatever Loki had felt, she felt tenfold. Lina couldn't even process any feeling or emotion aside from pain. She thought her head was being ripped in half and her mind was going crazy. She saw bits and pieces of a palace, of a dungeon, of a woman caressing her boy's face, and a flower. She saw a couple reading stories to each other and a great party with many people.

It was an overload. She couldn't handle all of the images and it was getting worse and worse.

"Lina," he called to her, trying to coax her out of her pain and getting her to focus.

She shook her head as her eyes remained sealed shut.

"Lina," he tried again, grabbing for her wrists. He was careful to only touch the parts covered by her sleeves so that they wouldn't cause another disruption.

"Loki," he heard Thor call to him. It was a call of caution as Thor watched his brother reach for the girl on the floor.

"Help me," he told him, moving over to allow Thor to pick up the girl.

Whispers traveled through the crowd. Not only were they concerned for the new agent who clearly couldn't keep out of trouble, but because the man who had caused so much destruction on their city was standing before them.

Loki glanced around at the concerned faces in disgust until one brunette came forward.

"She needs to get to the medical wing."

"Agent Hill, take Thor and Lina there," Fury instructed the agent Loki had just encountered.

Maria nodded and walked briskly in front of Thor as they made their way to take care of Lina. She was still screaming and still holding the sides of her head as if trying to prevent it from tearing open.

Loki started to follow when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Fury looking at him with a concerned face.

"Let them take care of her. I don't know if you being there is best for right now."

Loki scoffed. "I am to marry her. I'm always going to be what's best for her at any time of day."

"Are you sure? Because after what just happened, I'm not entirely certain."

Loki's jaw clenched as he looked down at his hands. The one he had used to reach out to Lina was a blistering red, heated from their touch.

"Come on," Tony beckoned, putting a hand on Loki's shoulder. "We'll get that looked at, and then we'll have a drink."

Hesitantly obliging, Loki followed Tony and Fury upstairs to a difference conference room where Bruce was waiting for them. He had gathered up whatever papers hadn't been destroyed and were looking them over, sitting at the table in the center of the room.

"Where's Natasha, Clint, and Steve?" Tony asked, walking over to a counter that had glass cups and a carafe on it. He poured two glasses full of amber liquid for himself and Loki and walked over to the table, setting a glass down in front of the demi-god who had decided to sit across from the doctor.

"They went to get their injuries checked out," Bruce said, his gaze not wavering from the paper in his hand.

"And I'm sure Steve went to go check on Lina too," Tony added, sipping from his glass.

Loki glared at him as he wrapped his hand around the glass, a slight frost starting to form upon it.

At first his day was going so well. He was leaving Asgard with Thor because Thor had found his love in Midgard, finally got to see her, and at his touch there was utter chaos. It made him wonder what had happened during her 1,000 year absence that made her this way. Not to mention the Captain was trying to take her away from him. It was a nightmare that Loki wanted to wake up from, but he knew that was as close to impossible as it could be.

"Uh, Frosty?" Tony called.

Loki looked up at him with irritation lining his gaze.

"You're turning your cup into an ice cube."

Loki looked down to his glass and saw that it was now encased within a solid block of ice. He let go of it and stood up, walking over to the window that mimicked the one in the room they were just in.

"She'll be fine," Fury finally said, standing next to Loki.

"I'm not so sure I agree," Loki replied, his arms going around his back and bringing his hands together.

"What happened between you two…something dark I'm guessing?" Bruce chimed in.

"It's an old form of dark magic," Loki said. "Its origins aren't easily traceable and only the best of sorcerers know how to make something like that happen."

"Can you do that?" Tony asked, taking residence in Loki's seat at the table.

Loki glared at him then returned his gaze to the window.

Tony rolled his eyes and began talking to Bruce again. "Anything you can figure out?"

Bruce shook his head as he pulled out the picture of the symbol that had been on all of the victims' backs. "Loki, do you think you can tell us what this is?"

He held up the picture for Loki to view as Loki turned around.

Loki's brow furrowed a little. Walking towards the picture, his eyes went from worried to alarmed. "Where did you get this?"

"It's what's been appearing on everyone that's gone missing. It shows up on their backs once they've returned home."

Loki's look grew more stern as he evaluated the symbol further. "This is…alarming to say the least."

"Why is that?" Fury asked, now at Loki's side also studying the picture.

Suddenly, Maria came running into the room. She was out of breath and trying to recapture her composure as she spoke. "Director…Fury…" she huffed.

"What is it, Hill?" he asked.

"It's Lina…you need to come see this."

Without any further direction, the men and Agent Hill began to jog back towards the medical wing.

Loki's heart was beating so loud he could hear it in his ears. His fears were growing exponentially, especially after seeing the symbol that Fury's victims had imprinted on their backs. It was bad.

It was very bad.

Upon reaching the medical wing, the group was greeted by Lina in a hospital bed, Thor and Steve both flanking the sides taking care of Lina. One was feeding her ice chips and the other was patting her head with a damp cloth.

She was whimpering, her eyes still squinting tightly every once in a while. In her mind, she still saw quick but very vivid images of things she could only guess were from her past. She remembered a woman who seemed to be her mother, a bear of a man she could only guess was her father, and a clear night where she had possibly sent a prayer to her family. At least she could say she was finally finding out who she was. Lina only wished it wouldn't be so painful.

Loki glared at Steve as he watched him care so tenderly for the woman who was supposed to be his wife. It wasn't fair that someone who had just appeared out of the blue in her life could mean so much to her when Loki had spent much more of his time winning her over. He felt helpless not being able to help the person he loved with all of his heart because he may hurt her more. Frustration etched itself in his face as he walked further into the room, his eyes fixed on Lina's features. He wished so much to be able to wipe the tears that were streaming down her cheeks. He wished to be able to place his hands on either side of her face and tell her how much he loved her.

"Can you lift her please?" Agent Hill finally said after catching her breath.

Thor and Steve nodded and began to turn Lina gently over to her left side so that everyone could look at her back. The hospital gown she had been given had been opened enough just to see the middle of her back.

To everyone's surprise, there was the symbol that the case victims had on their backs. Lina's was much bigger though, and it seemed to be moving. It seemed to be _alive_.

"What in the hell..?" Fury mustered out, taking a closer look at the symbol. "What were you saying about this symbol again, Loki? I remember the word 'alarming' being part of the description."

Loki stepped forward to inspect the symbol further as well. "It is even worse now that I can see this with my own eyes."

"What does it mean?" Steve meekly asked. His eyes never left Lina's face now that she was turned to face him. He was extremely concerned and didn't want to leave her side now that she was hurt. He especially didn't want to leave her alone with Loki.

"It is an old Asgardian rune," Loki began. "I've only seen it once regarding a certain sorcerer that Mother and the All-Father believed to be dead."

"Good guy? Bad guy?" Tony asked.

"If you count someone who tried to kill my father in order to become king a 'good guy'," Thor answered, bringing Lina back down to a resting position once again.

"This man is incredibly powerful," Loki added. "If he is building an army through these means, we don't have much time to prepare."

"What does he want?" Natasha asked. She wanted a straight answer from someone and no one was giving it.

"If his motives are the same, he wants to take over the nine realms for himself."

"And it looks like he wants to start with Midgard," Thor finished, feeding Lina another ice chip.

"What can we do for Lina?" Maria finally chimed in.

Loki sighed. "The only thing I think we can do for right now is to get that thing off of her back. Maybe if we do that we can delay the sorcerer for a small amount of time. Even then, I'd assume he has some kind of a back-up plan."

"I think that if you and Lina were to touch again, this symbol would disappear," Thor suggested. "It got really agitated after what just happened. I could see it moving under her uniform."

"Why would it react to Loki though?" Steve asked.

Fury sighed. "I will brief you all in a little while regarding Lina's situation. For now, I think Thor's theory may just be the best one we have."

"But it'll mean hurting her again," Loki said. It sounded more like a complaint than a statement.

"But do you want to help her or not?" Tony asked from behind Loki. He placed a hand on his shoulder, starting to understand Loki's concern. "It would be better for her to go through a temporary pain than to be ruled by whatever's doing this to her."

Loki nodded as his gaze returned to Lina's features. She was finally sleeping soundly, her face showing extreme exhaustion.

"Everyone: next door now," Fury directed.

"But Lina—" Steve stammered.

"She'll be fine, Cap," Fury said.

Steve looked back to Lina, then found himself being glared at by Loki. He uncomfortably shifted his way around the demi-god as he followed everyone out of the room.

Loki was the last to leave, his hand hovering over Lina's. He wanted to squeeze it and tell her it was going to be okay.

"Loki," Thor called from the doorway.

He hesitantly left his love's side and joined the group in the next room.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

"And what if they free her?" the meek creature asked his master.

The man laughed at the idea. "I see your concern." He straightened up in his throne as he contemplated his options. "Well, we do have someone else that could carry out the job."

"You don't mean…"

The man's mouth curled into a monstrous smile. "We'll have to bring her back from the dead, but she'll work out just fine."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

"Wait, so _he's_ her _fiancé_?" Tony exclaimed, pointing at Loki.

"Is there a problem?" Thor growled, lifting his hammer to his side.

"Please, brother, I hardly think it's necessary to defend me. I can handle myself," Loki scolded, his daggers appearing in his hands. "Please continue, Stark."

Without hesitation, Natasha and Clint were at the ready, weapons pointed at the dark haired man.

Steve and Bruce sat at the table across the room, watching the action commence.

Loki's face twisted in to a smile. He was living up to his old title of "Prince of Mischief" once again.

"That's enough!" Fury exclaimed. "Weapons: drop them all. _Now._"

Natasha glared at Loki once more as she dropped her guns to the ground. Clint followed suit, his bow and arrow clanging to the floor. Thor reluctantly let his hammer down with a _thud_ and Loki's daggers disappeared just as suddenly as they had appeared.

"Yes, she is his fiancé, but she has no recollection of her life in Asgard," Fury continued.

"And how do we know that's true?" Steve asked. "The source is closely related to him so of course he might just lie for him."

Thor stiffened at the accusation.

Fury, already anticipating the doubt that would come from the others, brought out a book of Norse mythology. It was the one that he had first used to learn about Thor and Loki and was also the one that he had seen Lina in before. He flipped through the pages and found the one that had Lina and Loki on it. "_Although the Prince of Mischief had made a life for himself, it wasn't made complete without his love, Princess Lina Sparrow. For many nights, he searched for his love who had mysteriously vanished from his arms, never to be seen or heard from again_," Fury read.

Steve walked over to look at the book, his eyes not believing the text he was reading.

"Okay, well that explains her past, but what about what she needs now?" Steve looked at Fury waiting for an answer eagerly.

"What she needs now?" Loki said, walking over to the Captain. "What she needs now is to get her memory back so that she can come home with me."

"Go home with you?" Steve asked out of disbelief. "You couldn't even keep her safe before. What makes you think you can take care of her now?"

"I know what's best for her."

"Do you, now? I'm sure you knew what was best for her when you decided to take over Earth with the Chitauri and cause all of those deaths. Were those all in her name by the way?"

"He's paid for those crimes," Thor interjected, now standing next to his brother. "He's paid in ways you can't even imagine."

"Well, I don't think he's changed much," Steve argued. He turned back to face Loki. "I don't see why you can't just let her go and be happy _here_. It's apparent that she didn't need you all of this time."

Loki was taken aback by the words, his mind going into a flashback of the first time he was visited by her projection in prison. Taking a deep breath, his eyes brimming with tears, Loki growled, "You don't understand what it was like to endure those long years without her. You don't understand what it's like to have everything you ever stood for taken away from you, wondering if you'll ever be happy again."

Steve walked up to Loki and met him toe-to-toe. "Actually, I think I do." Steve's mind jumped back to the woman he had left behind, unable to hold, love, or dance with ever again.

"Then why won't you let me try and get her back?" Loki yelled, startling some of the people in the room with the pain that was injected into his voice. He sounded desperate.

"Because I don't think you're what's best for her," Steve countered, matching Loki's volume.

"And who are you two to argue about what's best for my future?" a meek voice asked from behind them.

**Dreams in Azure: You're very good and reading into my creative mind haha. I hope this chapter answered some of your questions hehe**

**Leave me a review! Love hearing from you all! :)**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	9. Chapter 9

9—

She stood staring at each face in the room searching for an answer. "Well?" she asked again. Every eye she met with looked down or away from her. Finally locking eyes with Loki, she asked her question again. "Who are you two to argue about what's best for my future?" Her voice was firm even though she was in such a frail state. She didn't like to be argued over. She didn't like to be kept in the dark, especially when most of her memory was in the dark in the first place.

"I…uh…we…you…" Steve finally stammered out.

Loki glanced from the Captain back to Lina. He wanted to tell the blonde haired boy wonder to either make a cohesive sentence or to just stop talking because he wasn't making things any better for them both.

"Stop fighting over me, both of you. Do you understand?" Lina asked, her demand more focused on Loki. She had listened in on enough of the group's conversation to understand who he was to her—or who he was _supposed _to be to her. Her past didn't give any excuse for him to act like a child with Steve and fight over her. If he wanted to really win her, she wanted to see why she fell in love with him the first place. So far, he was doing a terrible job.

Turning her attention to Thor, Lina finally started again in a calm voice, "Do you really think your plan with work?"

Thor looked surprised and looked towards his brother. "Well…I honestly do not know if it will work. It is a theory though." He looked back to Lina. "It would be painful. It may even take some of Loki's magic to help break through whatever magic is blocking your memories."

"Let's do it then," she decided, leaning against the doorframe.

"Excuse me, Miss Sparrow," Fury started, his emphasis on her name very deliberate. "I don't remember making you the agent in charge. I also don't remember telling _anyone_ to let you out of that hospital bed."

"With all due respect sir, I think you and I both know that I'm not going to be an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. for much longer once this is over so the authority thing is going out the window for me right now. I apologize for my shortness but I'm tired, sore, and really frustrated." Her last sentence came out all in one breath, words strung together with speed. She inhaled deeply to gather her thoughts, then exhaled. "As for my hospital bed, I couldn't rest with people yelling in the room next door to me, so naturally I had to see what all of the ruckus was about."

"You really should return to that bed," Bruce interjected. "With your condition right now, you're unstable. Your numbers were off the charts when they first brought you in and I'm not sure if they've had enough time to stabilize." He walked closer to Lina, his hands in his pockets, and stood about a yard away from her. "I know you've done your homework. If there's anyone in this room you don't want to get mad, it's me. So please…go back to your bed."

Lina definitely knew the doctor was right. Of all of the Avengers, she was probably the most afraid of Dr. Banner. He was a nice man on the outside—a gentleman in every sense of the word. But, he was also a monster deep inside. One thing she never wanted to do was get on his bad side.

Obliging, Lina nodded and began to hobble back to her room where she sat in her bed. Bruce followed, grabbing the clipboard at the end of her bed and reading over what her condition was like.

"You're in for quite the recovery, Lina," he commented, his eyes peering at her over the brim of his glasses. "Are you ready for what's gonna happen?"

Lina sighed. "I'm more ready than you can imagine."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

It was going to happen the next day. Once Lina's numbers were stable enough and Bruce cleared her to resume her regular activities, Thor's theory was going to be tested. A separate portion of the facility was going to be used so that whatever damage that may take place would be contained in a better manner than Lina and Loki's first meeting.

Loki laid down on his bed staring at the ceiling. The only sound that could be heard was the ticking of the analog clock that was hanging over his doorway. He couldn't get her out of his mind. The tones she used, the expressions, the words…they weren't the Lina he remembered. She was colder, angrier, and a lot less interested in him than she was before. His mind shuddered at the thought that maybe she would never get her memory back at all.

Shaking his head, he decided his best distraction would be to go down to the training room and let off some steam.

Before he had met Lina, it wasn't like Loki to be so submerged in the affairs of others. He would never like to be involved in others' problems unless he was the one causing the mischief. It was usually enough just to be able to study his magic, go on whatever little quests Thor would drag him on, and allow any woman that would want him to please him as he wanted. And then Lina came along. At first she was nothing, then suddenly she became everything—all because of one simple fairy tale.

Upon arrive at the training room, he could see his brother already inside. He was practicing hand-to-hand fighting moves with an invisible body, his attention immediately grabbed when Loki entered.

"I've been expecting you," he greeted, his breaths heavy and frequent as he walked over to his brother.

"Were you?" Loki inquired, standing and looking at the many weapons displayed on the table next to him.

"Of course. I imagine your mind is quite distracted. You need a way to get out your frustrations."

"And you thought that I would succumb to violence, like you?" Loki asked him, his fingers tracing a dagger that sat near the edge of the table.

Thor wiped the sweat from his brow as he continued, "No, I just knew that you were hoping Steve would be here instead of me."

Loki's jaw clenched as he quickly locked eyes with Thor. "That so called 'captain' needs to learn about what's not his."

"And you need to stop treating Lina like she's some kind of trophy," Thor scolded, walking over to the training mats and sitting down. He gestured to a spot in front of him for Loki.

Loki continued to stand as brought his hands around his back and looked at his feet. "Is that how it appears?"

"Yeah, it does," another voice interrupted. "You and Steve need to lighten up…or go get laid. One of the two." Tony joined Thor on the floor, apply in hand. "If you both keep fighting over her, neither one of you will get her. Simple as that."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

"Are you ready?" Loki asked her.

Lina stood firm across from the dark prince. The room they were in was lightly padded and white. The only thing that really stood out besides its occupants was the glass window that stood a story above them, the Avengers, Fury, and Maria looking down to Loki and Lina.

She stared into his green eyes and nodded. "Do you what you must."

Loki swallowed hard as he held his hands out to touch Lina's head. It had been decided that he'd touch her where her memories were blocked. A combination of his touch and his magic may be enough to break open the locks that concealed her mind.

As his hands got closer to her, Lina's heart raced. This was it. She might get all of her memories back. She might finally be happy.

Or would she?

What about Steve? What about her life she had?

_No_. Scolding herself mentally, Lina reminded herself that she needed to get her memory back. This life she had on Midgard was not who she was. She was destined for more.

As his fingers made contact with her skin, Lina fought to keep control of her legs. She didn't let them buckle, but her upper body began to tense up. Pain ran through her veins and shot up and down her limbs. Her eyes were shut tightly. "Lo…ki…" she muttered.

"I've…almost…got it…" he mustered. The pain was shared in Loki's face. His mind was running at maximum power, darting in and out of the recesses of Lina's mind to get rid of the magic that consumed it. It was complicated, twisting through even the darkest of memories.

Steve watched helplessly from the room as Loki and Lina both stood in pain below him. "Are we sure this was a good idea?"

"We won't know until they're finished," Bruce answered, his stance indicating his anxiety. "I'm worried she won't be able to withstand this a second time."

Steve shot up and walked over to Bruce. "What do you mean she might not withstand it?" he demanded.

Bruce walked backwards away from the Captain as all eyes in the room fell on him. "Don't blame me. It wasn't my call to go through with it. Answer to the big guy if you have any major issues."

"Rogers," Fury called. Steve looked at him, irritation in his eyes. "You need to back down. She'll be fine."

"Like hell she will be," Steve said, grabbing his shield from a nearby table and leaving the room. He started to make his way downstairs to stop Loki from hurting Lina any more. He didn't know why he was so protective of Lina or why he even liked her. Maybe it was because she reminded him so much of what he lost that he didn't want to let go of her. He was afraid that if he lost her, he'd be just as alone as he was before.

Bursting through the door, Steve walked up to Loki just as he released Lina's head from his grasp. She fell to the floor, resting on all fours as she let out many deep breaths. Her vision was blurry, her mind a daze.

Without warning, Steve turned Loki around and threw a right hook to the demi-god's face.

Taken aback, Loki shook his head quickly and started to retaliate, throwing back just as many punches and letting loose a few spells as well. This would have been the Captain's fate had he been in the training room instead of Thor the other day.

As the fight began, Fury looked down and shook his head. "Romanoff? Barton?"

Without a word, the two left the room and started downstairs to break up the conflict that was unfolding.

With every punch and attack, Steve and Loki got angrier.

"What makes you think you're so good for her? Huh?" Steve called out, dodging spells as Loki kept moving around.

Loki ignored the taunting as he kept aiming for Steve. He was fast, but Steve was slightly faster.

As Natasha and Clint made for the door to the room, Loki waved his arm to shut it tight. No one was going to interrupt this.

As the two men were fighting and yelling at each other, Lina looked up at them. Her stomach felt queasy and the noise wasn't helping. She felt like a huge weight was starting to lift off of her. She felt like chains were falling from her. Looking up, she focused enough to see Steve's shield making contact with Loki, sending him flying across the room.

She held up her hand.

She waited.

Thor watched her movement and smirked. He was grateful he remembered to bring it.

"What is she doing?" Bruce asked, his gaze also focused on Lina.

"What is she waiting for?" Fury asked.

"Duck," Thor said, kneeling to the ground. "NOW!"

The other men ducked down in time for a sleek object to race through the air and meet Lina's hand. It was just as she remembered it. It was sleek, smooth, and light as a feather. The weapon seemed to come alive in her hand, its pulse beating in sync with Lina's.

In one fluid motion, Lina stood up and drew a crystal blue arrow with her bow. She missed it. She felt at home.

Releasing, the arrow flew through the air between the two men and pierced Steve's shield. A loud sound caused everyone to look down at her in surprise, their eyes then seeing the shield pinned to the wall by the arrow.

The rush of triumph was soon replaced by blackness. Lina found herself falling to the ground, her hand releasing her bow as it fell next to her. The room was spinning and her stomach began to turn.

Loki and Steve watched as a black, inky substance started to rise out of Lina. It flowed through the air like water, forcing itself to bend into strange shapes and forms. It glowed a light red and it seemed like it was hissing in pain. The men didn't move in fear that the inky substance would attack them if they did.

As quickly as the substance appeared, it vanished. Lina still lay on the floor, groaning in pain now that the substance was gone. Loki rushed to her side first, taking her hand in his and bringing her up to look at him. Her eyes were even more tired looking that before.

"Lina?" he asked, stroking her hair away from her face.

Blinking slowly, Lina took in Loki's features. "Hm," she said, a small smirk curling on her lips.

"Hm?" he asked.

"You still look just as handsome as the night you proposed to me."

**Sorry if this chapter's not as good. I'm dealing with some allergies due to vog right now (yes, vog-not fog) so I'm not feeling too well. Hope you enjoyed it though!**

**I'd love to hear back from more of you though! I know I have some avid readers (love you guys btw) but I'd love some more input for my writing, just to make sure I'm not doing all of this for nothing. I want to improve for all of you! :)**

**Thanks for reading!**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	10. Chapter 10

10—

He ran his hand through the inky substance as it loomed around on his lap. It was crying out in pain, obviously hurt by the demi-god's magic. He was very surprised that Loki had managed to clean Lina of his pet. There was more to the prince than met the eye.

But none of it mattered.

"Shhh, my pet," he cooed, stroking the darkness, "you'll be okay."

"Lord Fayne," a creature croaked, crawling towards the man in the throne. "The preparations have been made. She'll be arriving any moment now."

"Excellent." He looked down at the creature and handed his pet over to it. "See that this one gets taken care of. That demi-god did a number on her and I want her in perfect condition for her new host."

The servant cradled the dark creature in his hands and bent his head towards his master. "Yes sir," he answered.

Fayne watched as the servant crawled away and leaned back in his throne, eyes closed.

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Steve sat in the conference room looking through more files. His eye was still stinging from the confrontation a few days ago that left him not only injured, but without a shield. He flipped through more papers, trying to distract his mind from everything that happened, mentally scolding himself for getting so involved. He should have known better than to interfere. He should have known better than to start having feelings for the agent that was assigned to the case.

Then again, she wasn't really an agent was she?

He groaned and tossed the file in front of him, resting his head against the glass table.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid," he muttered to himself.

She watched him with a pang of guilt as he rested his head on the table. Lina remembered everything that had happened between them. The laughing, the talking, the dancing; she especially remembered how he fought to protect her. She wished there was some way to make it less painful for him.

"Steve?" she called from the doorway.

He shot up, his eyes locked with hers. "Princess Sparrow."

"Please," Lina replied, putting her hands up defensively, "call me Lina."

Steve's posture relaxed slightly as he sat back down in his chair. He pulled uncomfortably at his t-shirt. "I…um…"

She walked over to the table to join him. Sitting down, she rested her arms in front of her and looked at Steve. "I came to…apologize for everything that's happened here."

Steve laughed to himself as he shook his head. "You have nothing to apologize for. I," he started, leaning back in his chair, "got too involved."

She looked down at her hands, her fingers fidgeting with each other. "I understand why you found comfort in me the way you did," she said. She pursed her lips together, thinking hard about her words so she could convey the right message. "I hope that you find someone one day to bring you that same comfort." One hand reached for the pendant that was hanging from her neck. She looked up at Steve. He was watching her hands, seeing her reach for the pendant.

Finally looking away from her, he gazed down at the papers in front of him. "I understand. And I appreciate the well wishes. And…I hope you and Loki are happy."

She smiled slightly. "Thank you…Steve?"

He looked at her, a slight sadness in his eyes. "Yeah, Lina?"

"I'll always be here to help you out, okay? You need a wingman and _bam_, I'll be there for you."

He smiled a genuine smile for the first time in ages, causing Lina to breathe out a breath of relief. Laughing, he replied, "Thank you. I'll call you up the next time Tony takes me out for a drink."

She smiled and nodded, then stood up to leave. As she reached the door, she stopped to look at Steve again. "Chin up, Cap."

He nodded and saluted her with a smirk.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

"50 more missing persons brought back to their homes," Fury said to no one in particular. He was sitting in his office with Maria and Natasha going through new files that had come in.

"All of them with the marks," Natasha added, thumbing through a file.

"All of them with missing memories," Maria finished, laying a file on the table in front of her. "And we can't even narrow down the victim profiles. They've been anyone from young to old, male and female, no preference on race or nationality."

Fury's face was still in deep thought, staring at nothing. "That's not what's bothering me."

Maria and Natasha looked up at him, waiting for his words.

"Why isn't anything happening yet?"

"What do you mean?" Natasha asked.

"Loki _broke_ whatever it was that was in Lina. It disappeared and she's back to normal. Why didn't that trigger anything?" Fury glanced from one woman to the other, reading their expressions. "Weren't either of you half expecting for something major to happen now that it's been proven that these marks can disappear from a victim?"

Natasha and Maria looked at each other with slightly worried glances, then looked back at Nick.

"Whoever is behind this must feel very confident about his plans. I'm thinking he or she has some kind of a back-up plan. They have a _back-up_ plan," Nick emphasized. "We don't even have an _initial_ plan!"

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

She giggled when she stood in the doorway of the hospital room. Loki was fast asleep in the hospital bed and Thor was dozed off in the chair next to him. It was nice to see the two brothers being brothers again. It was just nice, actually, to remember who they were to her and why she loved them both so dearly.

Regaining all of her memories felt like the best gift anyone could have bestowed upon her. To look at Loki and feel a rush of feelings overcome her was one of the happiest things she had ever experienced. She was happy to be back in his arms after the 1,000 year ordeal had been figured out. Lina couldn't wait to go back home and see Frigga and finally get their lives back on track.

And the wedding…

Bruce tapped her on the shoulder, bringing Lina out of her thoughts. She turned around and greeted him with a smile. "Hey, Dr. Banner."

"As I've said before, just 'Bruce' is fine," he corrected, smirking slightly. He walked and stood next to Lina, looking into the room with her. "He's doing much better. I think it took a lot out of him to help you break free of whatever that thing was. Should be only a few more days in here and he'll be able to leave."

"I can't thank you enough, Bruce," Lina said, facing him.

"For what?" he asked, his hands now hiding in his pockets once more.

"Just…for everything." She smiled at him, conveying everything with unspoken word. Between keeping her well to taking care of Loki, Bruce had done a great deal for them.

He smiled, nodded, then turned to walk back to his lab. He was analyzing a sample of the black substance that had been left behind on Lina. It wasn't strong enough to take over a new host, so it was his and Tony's new test subject.

Walking into the room, Lina put a hand on Thor's shoulder and shook him lightly. He woke with a start, his face strong and fearless as he looked around and saw that it was only Lina that had disturbed him. Thor's face immediately relaxed and eased into a smile.

"What is it, Little One?" he asked.

"I came to relieve you of your Loki-Watching duties," Lina explained. "Go get some sleep in a _real_ bed."

He nodded as he looked back at his brother, then back to Lina. "It's good to have you back."

"Good to be back," she replied, smiling.

Thor stood up and wrapped his arms around the small woman. He then pulled back, looked at her again, smiled more, then walked out of the room to his own.

She resumed Thor's place in his seat and took Loki's left hand in hers. She rubbed it with her thumb and took in his features. He looked peaceful as he slept. She couldn't help but smile to herself and allow some tears to stream down her cheeks. She missed him dearly and couldn't imagine what he had gone through to find her throughout those years. Thor had told her a lot had happened, but he wanted her to hear it from Loki.

Resting her head on his hand, Lina took a deep breath, more tears escaping from her eyes.

Loki's eyes fluttered when he woke and realized he wasn't alone with his brother any longer. He saw Lina resting her head down and could feel his hand getting wet with her tears. Without shifting too much, he waved his right hand in the air and conjured the flower that he had pinned in her hair many years ago.

The odor was enough to cause Lina to look up suddenly. She saw the flower first, then looked up at Loki's eyes.

"Why are you crying, my flower?" he asked, his face saddened by her tears.

She tried to smile, but it caused more tears to be pushed out of her eyes. "I'm just," she began, her crying making it difficult to speak. She tried to gather her composure as she took a deep breath. "I'm relieved that I'm with you once again."

He smiled brightly at her as he handed her the flower. "As am I, darling. Come here," he said, pulling his hand away from her and opening his arms to her.

Lina kicked off her shoes and climbed into the bed with Loki, her head resting between his shoulder and neck.

He rested his chin on her hair as he held her close. "I've missed you greatly…please don't leave me ever again." He felt her nod vigorously as she buried her face in his chest. It was a thrill to finally be able to hold Lina in his arms again. The one person who brought him sanity, care, and all of the love he could imagine was finally with him once more. He could breathe easy knowing she was found and well. There was so much to tell her about her absence and about what he experienced. He wanted to bring her home at that very moment so they could lie under the stars of Asgard and exchange all of the missed hugs, kisses, and words that were so much needed while she was gone.

He brought his fingers under her chin and lifted it so he could look at her. Her eyes stared into the deepest parts of his soul, as his did hers. He got lost in them, the nine realms a mere speck to the galaxies he could explore within those bright brown orbs. He smiled as a few tears escaped his eyes and Lina giggled as hers did the same. "I have something for you."

Loki and Lina adjusted so that he could sit up in the bed. Undoing the chain around his neck, he slipped the ring off of it and held it out for her. "This has been missing you for quite some time. Seeing as how you didn't even get to wear it for more than a day, you should be reunited with it again."

She smiled as she held out her left hand for Loki to put her engagement ring on it. The emerald that was sitting in the center looked just as bright as she remembered, if not brighter. Lina looked back up at Loki who was also smiling as he watched her react again to her ring.

"Loki…I love you."

"I love you too, Lina. And I promise to never lose you again." He pulled her into a hug and held her tightly, both finally taking in one another after their long separation.

They were finally happy, but they both knew deep down that their problems were only beginning to unravel from here.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

They brought the body in and placed it on the table in front of Fayne. He walked over and inspected it. "Is she ready?"

"This is everything that we could find and bring back together."

Fayne nodded. "Bring my pet."

The creatures scurried around, telling one to tell another to tell another what their master wanted. Soon, the same creature that had taken Fayne's pet away was bringing it back.

"Is she well?"

"Extremely."

"Good." Fayne took the inky creature from his servant and stroked it like a cat. "Here's your new home, sweetie."

He let the inky creature crawl all over the body of its new host, taking in every nook, curve, and line that it could find. It seeped into her skin and began to wake her up. Her nerves, senses, mind were all the creature's to control. As it settled in, the Asgardian rune made itself welcome on her back.

Her eyes fluttered open, a light red glow around her brown eyes. She sat up, blinking a few more times and taking in her surroundings. Her eyes found Fayne and she suddenly smiled. "I didn't think I'd come back from the dead this way, but it's definitely a pleasant surprise."

"And to think I'd lost you after all this time."

"You didn't lose me," she corrected, kicking her feet over the edge of the table to face Fayne. "You were just too lazy to come get me."

"Until now, I didn't have the means."

"Excuses, excuses. What's the plan?"

Fayne smiled as he walked over to the woman and wrapped his arms around her waist. "To finish the job you started, my dear."

The woman laughed as her mouth curved into a twisted smile. "So tell me…how is my beloved sister, Lina?"

**Dreams in Azure: I hope you're feeling better! I was out sick this week too so I feel your pain. thanks for taking the time to review! And yes, you're right on the money when it comes to my stories. I'm glad we think the same :) Of course it's okay if part of the chapter was funny haha. I try to put some humor in there ****occasionally****:D**

**Can't wait to hear from more of you! Hope you like the story!**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	11. Chapter 11

11—

"Back to Asgard?" Fury asked, staring at the two men across from his desk.

"We need to talk to my father regarding the sorcerer behind all of these brandings," Thor explained. "He is the most knowledgeable and we may figure out a way to protect more people from getting involved."

Fury sat, his gaze going from one brother to the other. "And she _needs_ to go with you?"

Loki looked at Thor before he spoke. "I want her to come back with us so that the All-Father knows she's alive."

"And the Queen will also want to know her status as well," Thor finished. They looked at Fury pleadingly, like two dogs wanting to go out for a walk through the park with their master.

It had been a hard week for the group. All leads turned up only dead ends and the amount of people with the Asgardian rune were growing exponentially. It had made local news that the disappearances were happening, government involvement coming into question. They were running out of time and Fury knew it.

There was still a nagging feeling going on in his head though. To let Thor and Loki leave now would be to allow two of their strongest allies to leave them unprotected. It wasn't a comfortable feeling, especially not knowing completely what they were up against. Fury especially didn't want Loki to leave his sight.

With hesitation, Fury finally said, "I suppose it will be alright. You have 48 hours gentlemen. Not a moment more."

"You have our word," Thor said, nodding to Fury. He looked at Loki, then proceeded out of the office and to the conference room where Lina and the other Avengers were waiting, Loki not far behind.

As they walked, their armors began to decorate themselves on their bodies through Loki's magic. Now that they had Lina back, they didn't know what would happen. No one knew why the breaking of dark magic that blocked Lina's memory hadn't alerted anyone and caused a surprise attack yet, but they weren't going to take any chances.

"Alright, we shall be taking our leave in a few minutes," Thor announced.

"You gonna bring me back a souvenir?" Tony asked, smirking at the god.

"What is a souvenir?" Thor asked, a perplexed look on his face.

Steve looked at the god with an expression that said "Even I know what that is." He looked at Loki who was walking towards Lina. He still didn't trust the demi-god, no matter how much Thor asked him to.

Tensions still ran high between the two men, passing glances in the hallways of S.H.I.E.L.D. being their only forms of communication after their fight. They were both very apprehensive towards one another, and Steve never wanted to be in the same room as Loki for too long unless Lina was there as well.

"Ready to go, love?" Loki asked, beaming as he walked towards Lina.

She smiled in return. "Of course I am," she replied. "I fear I'm going to stick out a bit though. I don't have any of my dresses."

Loki tutted at her as he flicked his wrist lightly.

At first, Lina expected him to pull a prank on her and make her clothes either disappear or become something very distasteful to her standards. Instead, she found herself standing in a crème colored gown with gold trimming, her hair pulled back into a half ponytail with waves that cascaded down her shoulders, and a gold head piece that sat on her brunette locks and formed a v shape on her forehead. He had even changed the jewelry that he had given her so that the ring band and the chain were both gold.

She looked down at herself and smiled back up at Loki. "You never cease to impress, do you?"

He smiled widely to her and then turned to face his brother. "Shall we?"

Everyone in the room was still surprised at Lina's transformation. Now she really looked like the princess in the Norse mythology book that was still open on the table. She was as true as the legend had written her to be.

The three took their leave and walked outside, Heimdall ready to bring them back to Asgard.

Clint sighed loudly as he watched the bright beam of light through the window in the room. "I still don't trust him."

"You too?" Steve asked, tossing the file he was holding onto the table.

"I don't know what she sees in a liar like him," Natasha added, leaning against the wall opposite from Steve.

"I'd like to think that he wasn't always like that," Tony said, sitting in the chair that was across from Steve. "Maybe he's like one of those misunderstood characters on TV shows that everyone just loves to hate."

Natasha rolled her eyes, sighing almost louder than Clint had.

"Well whatever we think doesn't matter right now," Bruce added, starting to walk towards the door. He stopped in the doorway to face everyone once again. "We just…have to keep our eyes open, stay on our toes, and hope the big guy doesn't have to make an encore appearance for Loki again."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

The rush of the Bifrost made her giddy beyond words. Each second they spent in the Bifrost was a second closer to going back to the place she missed during her absence. She wanted to walk through the castle, chat with Frigga, stroll through the marketplace, and visit the flower garden with Loki like she used to. Her mind was racing at a million miles a minute, her excitement almost impossible to contain in her tiny body.

The three Asgardians landed on their feet in the golden dome that Heimdall was standing in. He, along with the three who had just arrived, was beaming with delight. To see Lina again made him very happy. He too missed her during her absence, and he missed how she had made the family he served so joyous and full of life.

"Welcome back, Princess Sparrow," he said, bending over slightly to bow to her.

Without thinking, Lina ran up to Heimdall and wrapped her arms around his strong waist.

Startled, Heimdall looked to Thor and Loki in shock and surprise. All they could do was try to contain their laughter. After a few seconds, Heimdall returned the hug he was receiving.

After releasing Heimdall from his embrace, Lina jogged back to Loki and took his hand in hers, starting to lead him out of the dome so she could let her eyes revel in the vast beauty that was Asgard. The sun's rays hit her first, their warmth unlike that of Earth's. She looked around at all of the various buildings that surrounded the trio's walkway back to the castle. Everything was just as she remembered it, and she was thankful that nothing major had changed while she was gone. It was like she could pick right back up where she had left off in her old life.

Reaching the castle, the three royals were greeted by servants, many of whom after they bowed beamed brightly at Lina. Lina was a very liked figure in the castle. She was kind to every servant that had assisted her and had even befriended many of them. They all looked surprised as well that she had returned. Maybe Heimdall hadn't told anyone that Thor and Loki had found her?

Upon arriving at the doors to the throne room, Loki stopped Lina from going inside.

"I think you should wait out here until we've talked to Odin about what's happening in Midgard."

"But why?" Lina begged, her eyes suddenly sad that her leash had been cut short.

"I want to ease all of the information onto him slowly," Loki said. "The idea that this sorcerer is coming back from the dead to attack once more is going to be quite the load to bear and I want to make sure he's ready when we also tell him that you're alive."

Lina sighed, but nodded as she went to sit on a bench that sat against the wall. "I'll be here if you need me."

Loki smirked as he looked back at his brother, signaling that he was ready to go in.

As the two brothers pushed open the doors to the throne room, they immediately sensed something wasn't right. Their smiles faded to concerned lines as they looked at Odin's angered face.

Thor's eyes went to his mother's, her face showing concern and fear as her boys walked through the doors.

"Father?" Thor asked, breaking the silence that had fallen onto the group.

He and Loki stopped in front of his father's throne, still awaiting a reply.

Loki's stance started to tense as he counted the amount of guards in the room. There were definitely more than were needed and he didn't think that they were expecting any other company than his and his brother's.

Odin sat silently, staring at the two men before him. "How dare you."

"I beg your pardon?" Thor asked again. "What is going on?"

"I allowed you both to Midgard to help the humans in their so-called 'problem' you spoke about, and I find out that Loki had been meddling in dark magic!" Odin roared, his guards starting to step forward towards the brothers.

"It was not that I was trying to use it for my own purposes. I—"

"Enough," Odin barked at him, his gaze hard and angry. "I trusted both of you to see to it that the mortals were taken care of and instead, you, Laufeyson, go behind my back and soil my trust in you."

Guards came up behind Loki and pushed him to his knees, shackles being brought around his wrists, ankles, and neck. It was an all too familiar feeling for him.

"And you, Thor," Odin continued.

"Father, you don't understand what hap—"

"You should know better than to defy your father—your KING."

Again, guards brought Thor to his knees and shackled him so he too couldn't escape.

"To create an alliance with one of my enemies is one of the worst acts of treason I have ever seen," Odin murmured, sadness creeping across his face. "And to see it be done by my own sons…"

Loki clenched his jaw at the mention of being Odin's son. He could accept Thor being his brother and Frigga being his mother, but he would never in a million lifetimes accept Odin as his father.

"Father it is not what you think!" Thor shouted, angrily thrashing in his chains.

"We haven't been meddling in dark magic on purpose. It is what is affecting the humans in Midgard," Loki tried to explain through gritted teeth, pushing against another guard who was trying to hold him down.

Odin leaned back and closed his eyes. "And I suppose that you expect me to believe you? Believe you even though the traces of the dark magic come from a sorcerer who is known for twisting the minds of his pawns and blocking out memories? I even suppose," Odin continued, opening his eyes once again to focus on Thor and Loki, "that you will go on to argue that you saved Lina in the process?"

"If you unhand them and let them explain what had happened to me, then maybe you would realize the truths that they speak."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Bruce walked around the lab, tending to the various tests that were being run and looking over each clipboard that held new information in the subject they had in the lab. He and Tony had been running test after test on the leftover inky substance that had stuck around after Lina regained her memory. Capturing it had been simple, the specimen too weak to latch onto anything and too weak to fight back when it was contained. Even at the current time it wasn't making any effort to escape. Bruce had wondered if it was giving up, or maybe even was kind of relieved that it didn't have to attach to a host for the time being.

He only assumed this because the inky creature hadn't fought against going through various tests. Whatever he or Tony asked it to do, it did. They figure out it obeyed commands after the first day of staring at it and trying to take samples without it pulling itself back into one cohesive figure.

As Bruce strolled around the room, it was quiet. The humming machines and the sound of his footsteps were the only things that could be heard.

Or that's what Bruce thought.

A hissing sound caught his attention. He looked around the room, not seeing anyone else there. He ignored it and continued to read over the information in his hand when he heard it again. This time it sounded like someone was whispering something.

"Hello?" he asked.

No answer.

He slowly set down the clipboard and took off his glasses. Walking towards the inky substance to check on it, he kept his ears on high alert for any other noises. His heart was beating quickly now, his hands starting to shake with nervousness. Trying to control his inner beast was a struggle some days, but he knew that all of this was not caused by the giant within him.

As he lingered near the specimen, he heard the whisper again. The source, it seemed, came from what was in front of him. With wide eyes, he leaned closer to the glass case that had the being contained within it.

"I can help you," it hissed, sending Bruce jumping back when he heard the voice talk to him.

"Tony!" he called out, briskly jogging out of the room and down the hall to find the other scientist.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

She had growled her words more than stated them. She stood with her hands at her sides, her face an unwavering form of courage and anger. It was a stern look that Loki had never seen fall onto her face. He had only seen that look on one other person and that was his mother. It was the look of a strong queen.

Odin stood up, his eyes wide and his knees quivering. He couldn't believe what he was seeing.

At the same time, Frigga had stood up, her hands reaching up to cover her mouth.

All eyes were now on Lina, the shocked silence dispersing itself to every person except for Thor and Loki. It was as if Lina was a ghost and everyone was trying to figure out if she was an illusion or if she was really there.

"I understand my place here," she continued, "but I cannot allow you to chain these two men up like animals for saving my life. I also cannot allow you to charge the same men with treason for partaking in dark magic that they had no way of avoiding." With every word, she strode towards the throne that held the baffled king.

She approached the guards who held Thor and Loki and looked at them sternly.

"Princess Sparrow," Odin finally mustered out, staring at the woman who stood before him.

"Yes, my lord?" she asked. Her tone was one of annoyance, but had some respect hinted in it.

Shaking his head and gathering his thoughts, he sat back in his throne and waved his hand, the guards dispersing away from his sons and the shackles that bound them falling to the floor. "And what situation were you involved in that caused Loki Laufeyson's being to dabble in dark magic, as you say it, unavoidably?"

Lina then explained what had happened to her mind during her 1,000 year absence from Asgard and how Loki's magic was what broke the being away from her mind so she could be herself again. It was a long and tedious explanation, but for fear of leaving anything out and getting Loki and Thor in trouble again, she wanted to be as detailed as possible.

She took a deep breath when she finished her explanation, her eyes never yielding to the All-Father's.

He cleared his throat and looked at Thor and Loki. "My…apologies. With the mention of the type of dark magic that had been used on Midgard, I could not take any chances with anyone that had been involved in it."

Loki rolled his eyes as he walked towards one of the throne room's windows. "So is this the man that you so fear?" he asked.

Odin sighed as he looked at Thor with now tired eyes. "Unfortunately, it is."

"Who is it that we're talking about?" Lina asked.

"His name is Fayne," Frigga explained, finally finding words to string together cohesively. "He is a dark sorcerer that, at one time, tried to conquer the nine realms for himself and replace King Odin to become an all-powerful ruler."

"He failed, though," Thor added, "because he was missing something important that lead to his downfall."

"He needed…an equal to rule by his side," Loki picked up, his gaze still outside overlooking Asgard. "He needed a cunning being to aid him that was just as powerful, if not exceedingly powerful."

Lina scrunched her brow as she started to put the pieces together. She thought about the creature that had taken over her body and how there were more like it, the runes on peoples' backs indicating where the creatures were hiding. "So everything that's happening how…he's created these being, then," she started, looking up at Thor. "These beings are his equals. And they're taking over hosts to create an army."

"And all of them will be his to control," Loki finished, turning back towards the group.

Thor turned to look at his father. "We need to know everything that happened last time Fayne attempted his rise to power and anything you know regarding Fayne himself. He is targeting Midgard first and we need to stop him before things get too out of hand."

Odin nodded as he stood up and walked down the stairs from his throne. "You and Loki will come with me and I shall brief you on everything in the library. Princess Sparrow, you will return to Midgard to help protect the mortals until such a time that these two can return."

"And why am I going back? Why can't I stay here?" she argued, stepping forward towards the king.

"Because it is too dangerous to keep you here!" he barked, his tone growing impatient. "You said that Loki was able to free your mind of the magic that Fayne placed upon it. Who knows if he's still keeping track of where you are. If he comes here, Asgard will fall to its knees because it is not ready for what he is going to send our way."

"And you'd rather see Midgard fall first because I baited Fayne there and not here because it buys you more time," Lina hissed, turning in disgust from the All-Father back to the throne room doors.

Loki glared at Odin before jogging after Lina who was already out of the room and heading down the stairs to go back to see Heimdall.

"Lina," he said loudly.

She kept walking.

"Lina!" he called out.

She whipped her head around, her eyes hardened by the events that had just unfolded.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Back to Midgard."

"No, you're not," he argued, his hands reaching for hers.

"The All-Father obviously doesn't want me here, so I'll take my leave and meet you back at S.H.I.E.L.D. before any other damage can be done."

"Why are you being so stubborn about this? You're not going to go anywhere without me," he said with a bite. His features immediately softened as he looked down at the small hands he was now holding. "I don't want to risk losing you again."

She shook her head as she brought one of her hands to his face. "I'll be fine. We'll be back together before you know it."

Loki looked at her with untrusting eyes, but he didn't get a chance to have another say in the matter.

With her hand still cupping his face, she brought her lips to his and kissed him with as much passion as she could muster. He pulled her in, his arms wrapping around her waist protectively, reveling in every feeling the nerves in his hands could provide. There hadn't been many times since Lina had regained her memory that they could both have moments like this. They were busy trying to gain ground on Midgard and didn't have time to themselves unless it was to sleep due to overworking.

Loki groaned slightly when she pulled away. She gave him a loving look before walking back towards the golden dome.

He watched as the Bifrost opened and his love was sent back to Midgard, his mind fighting greatly to refrain his body from chasing after her.

**Thank you to all of the new followers! I'm glad you're interested in the story and I hope to hear reviews from you all :)**

**What do you all think so far? Feel free to review or PM me! :)**

**With Love,  
sparrowlina**


	12. Chapter 12

12—

Fayne leaned back in his throne, watching Maura stroll back and forth across the room. She was getting used her having her body back once again. She skipped, jumped, jogged, and strut until she was comfortable with her range of motion again. She practiced her magic, conjuring random objects to her hands and making them disappear just as suddenly. She even managed to summon one of his minions and started controlling the minion's actions, making it dance across the floor before letting it escape out of the main entryway.

He had to admit, she was quite the sight to see. It had been too long since his Maura had disappeared from his life, killed by her twin sister in an effort to save Asgard from its impending doom. Once that realm had been taken over successfully, Fayne had intentions of marrying Maura so they could rule the nine realms together as king and queen.

That would have to wait.

Pulling him out of his thoughts, Maura walked over to Fayne and placed her hands on either side of his face. She studied him, her dark eyes piercing into his black ones. She could faintly make out the outline of his pupil. His eyes were dark—full of everything yet revealing nothing. The wrinkles and hard lines on his face showed his determination and his many years of making their dreams reality. The stubble on his cheeks tickled her fingers as she dragged them down to his neck. Leaning in, she pecked his lips once lightly before he pulled her onto his lap, snaking his arms around her.

"I missed you dearly," he said, burying his face in her luscious, black hair.

"I know," she replied, one arm draped across his shoulders and the other returning to his cheek. "And I am forever grateful for you returning me to my usual state."

"Well…partially at least."

Maura nodded as she closed her eyes, feeling the symbol on her back twitch with movement. Because she was acting as a host body for this creature, she could never really be herself. It was a sacrifice she was willing to make in order to carry on with she and Fayne's plans to rule the realms. And even then, if Lina hadn't removed this creature from her mind initially, Maura wasn't going to be here at all. At times, she wondered if Fayne would have brought her back to life if his initial plan hadn't backfired so badly.

"Something wrong, love?" he asked, nudging his nose against hers.

She brought her eyes back to his, a smirk gracing her lips. "No," she coolly replied. "So, what's the plan from here?"

He smiled at her as he leaned back, taking in the gorgeous person that sat before him. "Well…I figured we could possibly pick up where we left off when I last saw you." His smile grew more wicked as he looked at Maura. "Ruling as a royal couple will mean needing some heirs to the throne…"

Maura laughed as she let her pearly whites brighten her facial expression. "You are very ill-disciplined and should understand that we have greater issues to attend to. What you crave will be…a reward, shall we say?"

He sighed deeply, his smile fading. "Yes, yes…I suppose so."

"Good," Maura said with a bounce, pushing herself off of Fayne's lap. She strolled towards one of the open windows that overlooked some of the many galaxies that Fayne had the fortune of being able to see. "How many more do you need for your army?"

"It's hard to say," Fayne replied, standing up to join her. "I'd say we're at about 75% now. The time is nearly upon us."

Maura smirked. "And what will we do about my ever-so-sweet sister?" She looked up at Fayne, pleading for the answer she had cooked up in her mind. The next time she saw Lina, she wanted to be sure that she got revenge for her death. It wasn't that she wanted her sister to die. She wanted to see her sister suffer in any way that she could possibly imagine. It would be a shame to waste such potential by simply killing her.

"I shall decide that at a later time, once we've evaluated the capabilities of her and this Avengers group she seems to be associating with."

"But I would be able to make things so easy with my magic," Maura whined, her eyes begging him to let her off of her leash to cause all of the chaos she wanted.

"No," he growled firmly. "One mistake and our whole plan will be ruined. We cannot afford any room for errors this time around."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

The three men strode into the large Asgardian library being sure to waste no time with the information that needed to be gathered. Odin had instructed that they not be bothered until such a time that Thor and Loki needed to leave and return to Midgard. It was an interesting feeling for him to be working so closely with both of his sons again.

If he could really say that he had two sons.

Odin knew that he still faced great opposition with Loki. He didn't blame Loki for feeling that way. Maybe, he hoped, one day he and Loki could find it in their hearts to forgive one another and be able to live cohesively without any threat of one exploding at the other. That wouldn't be happening any time soon, it seemed.

Upon reaching a large table with several books laid out upon it, Odin sat down in a chair that was placed at the table's head.

"All of the information regarding the attacks is written in these volumes. You can take them back with you to Midgard for referencing should you need them."

Loki opened one book, seeing that it was a collection of all those who passed away during the attacks as well as what rank they were. Some were nobles, some were warriors, and some were simply young children that were at the wrong place at the wrong time. For some reason, this struck a chord and reminded him of Lina. Lives of the innocent were at stake and he didn't want to think of what would happen if she were to get hurt while on his watch.

"What exactly happened during the attack, Father," Thor asked, also looking through one of the books. This one was filled with personal stories of those who were attacked or affected by the attacks, their accounts helping to piece together the parts of the overall story that had been either overlooked or not told because no one had known why a certain event had occurred.

Odin sighed as he stared off blankly towards the table. "You two were merely a twinkle in your mother's eye at the time of all this chaos and ruin…

"Uproars had begun throughout the realms by an unknown force that we couldn't quite identify. It was like a plague had settled upon each site and was ravaging through it. Men were dying, women were being raped and killed, children were being toyed with for fun to keep whatever people of power at bay so that the armies could simply pillage as they pleased.

"It hit a point where Fayne's armies had taken over all realms except for Asgard. We waited with uncertainty for the enemy to show up at our doorstep. Our warriors were ready and waiting, our people were sent to the far off lands of our realm to be protected should our warriors have fallen. When Fayne had approached us, we got our first look at _pure_ evil."

Odin's gaze went from Thor to Loki. Their faces were hard and concerned, drinking in every word that their father told them.

"He had told us to relinquish our realm or die trying to protect it. Obviously we had already made up our minds as to what we were going to do before Fayne had even stepped foot into Asgard. We fought long and hard against his armies. So much innocent blood was spilled that day…"

Thor sat down in a chair that was behind him, still focused on his father. "How did you win?"

Odin smirked as he leaned back.

"Something funny?" Loki asked, slightly annoyed at the fact that his brother's question had brought some form of amusement to Odin's face.

"Not in the slightest," Odin replied. "I'm just remembering the pride I had felt when he had won. Do you know who had played one of the most important roles in our victory?"

The brothers exchanged looks before looking back to the All-Father once more.

"Your mother."

Odin smiled once again as he closed his eyes. Thor's mouth had gone slightly agape, Loki's expression nearly following suit.

"What did she do?"

"She used her magic and her wit to cause Fayne to fall. She was, and still is, very powerful. He made the mistake of backing her into a corner. Not anticipating her strength, Fayne soon fell to the pure magic that Frigga unleashed. When his followers saw that their leaders had failed, they fled. Our warriors were then free to reclaim the realms and restore peace. It came at a price, though…"

Loki's ears perked at the sound of Odin's last statement.

"What was the price, Father?"

Odin looked down with a deep sadness in his eyes. He stood up, walked over to Thor, and placed his hand on the side of his son's face. "It cost her the life of our unborn child."

Thor leaned back and let out a large breath of air, understanding the sacrifice that his mother had made for their realm. "But then…how can we defeat him now? I'm sure that mother's method was not only impractical, but reckless on her part. Not to mention that we would not just go around trying to procreate and then killing the child."

"So basically…you've told us nothing."

Thor and Odin looked at Loki, a frown etched upon his face.

"The way to Fayne," Odin continued, his gaze not leaving Loki's, "is through pureness. He contains nothing but evil within him and it is up to you to find the crack in his exterior. Find it, and he will fall."

Unsatisfied with Odin, as he usually was, Loki began to walk briskly out of the library. Thor looked at his father, nodded appreciatively to him, then followed Loki as quick as he could.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

One arrow.

Two arrows.

Three arrows.

Four.

This method went on and on for hours until Lina lied down on the training mat, her chest trying to keep up with the amount of oxygen that was needed to satisfy her lungs. It felt good to finally be able to train hard like she used to with her brother. It also felt amazing to be reunited with her bow once more, the memories of her father rushing through her veins to her fingers where she would create the beautiful blue arrows.

She must have let loose at least a hundred arrows during practice. After the last one, she felt she needed a break.

"You should show me how to shoot like that one day," she heard a voice call out. Looking backwards towards the door so that the floor looked like the ceiling in her vision, she saw Clint standing at the doorway of the training room. She smiled and rested her head back on the mat so that she was facing the normal ceiling and its blindingly bright lights once more.

"I don't think you need much practice on your part, if I remember correctly."

Clint laughed as he walked towards her, extending his hand to help her up. "You should take the rest of tonight off. Overworking yourself won't do us any good should we come under attack."

She nodded as she reached for Clint's hand, feeling herself being brought up to a standing position.

"Bruce said he wants to see you, also," Clint added.

Lina thanked him and walked back to her room where she showered and changed into her usual S.H.I.E.L.D. appointed uniform. From there, she stopped off at the cafeteria, grabbed an apple off of one of the serving tables, then proceeded to walk to the lab.

It was an interesting feeling now that she was back to her "normal" self. She walked through the halls of S.H.I.E.L.D. without being seen as "the new girl" or "the agent who doesn't know what she's doing" or (her personal favorite) "Fury's servant".

Upon reaching the lab, Lina found Bruce and Tony staring at the inky substance in awe and amazement.

"You two okay?" she asked, walking towards them with caution. Was something wrong with the specimen? Was it going to kill them?

"Uh…" Tony managed to get out, his mouth still hanging open from when Lina had first seen him.

"It's…talking," Bruce finished.

"What are you two talking about?" Lina asked, walking around the table to stand between the two men.

It was then that she heard it: a whisper that sent shivers up and down her spine, then back up once again for good measure. The voice seemed to be in her head, invading the deepest parts of it that even she never dared to go into.

"_I can help you_," it whispered. She watched the substance start to get excited, filling the container with more of itself as it communicated with the trio. "_I want to help. I want to be free…_"

**Hmm...thoughts? :) I'd really like to hear back from people - please? :) Big thanks to all of the new supporters!**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	13. Chapter 13

13—

"D-d-did that thing just say..?" Lina asked, pointing at the murky creature and looking at Tony and Bruce in disbelief.

Bruce nodded, eyes fixed on the creature. "It started a few hours ago when I was in here looking through the data we collected on it so far. First it was just a muffled whisper, then it started to talk to me clearly."

"Greenie here panicked then ran like a little girl down the hall," Tony continued, also staring at the creature. "And then came to find me."

"Thank you for that very inaccurate recap," Bruce muttered, finally walking away from the table where the creature sat. He strolled over to another counter that had a wide array of files sprawled all over it. There were case files about the victims that were chosen as well as summaries of the different tests he and Tony had conducted so far. He put on his glasses and began to look over the files for what seemed like the one millionth time, distracting his emotions from getting too irritated with Tony.

"Any time, Brucey," Tony chimed. He beamed brightly at the back of Bruce's head, then turned to Lina. The smile he had started to fade as he asked her, "What do you think is going on?"

Lina had no reply. She just kept staring at the creature as it tried to continuously free itself from the glass confine it was in. This was what was in her all of these years. This was what she had to deal with. This was what had kept her from Loki and from being happy with her life. Part of her wanted to smash the glass open and kill the creature where it floated. Then again, part of her wanted to nurture it, as if it was a part of her she had grown fond of.

"**_Zila_**," it hissed.

All eyes now rested on the creature once more. It was so silent you could hear a pin drop.

"Zee-lah?" Tony asked, finally breaking the silence. He stepped towards the dark creature. There was a fire in his eyes that was lit by the interest he had in it. "What is that? Your name? Your master's name?"

"It's her name," Lina said. Tony and Bruce exchanged looks before both turning towards Lina.

"_Her_?" Bruce emphasized with a good amount of disbelief in his voice. He looked over the brim of his glasses and his gaze flitted from Tony back to Lina.

Looking back at Bruce with as much surprise as he showed her, she racked her brain as to how she knew what the creature was. How did she know her name?

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

"Brother," Thor called out, starting to jog to keep up with Loki's fast paced steps. He sensed his brother's annoyance. He sensed his frustration.

Loki ignored Thor as he continued to weave through the halls of the castle to reach his room. There were some things he wanted to collect before they returned to Midgard. His mind was racing to analyze the information Odin had given them. "_The way to Fayne is through pureness…Find it and he will fall_."

"Brother," Thor called again. Loki continued to march away from him, his pacing seeming to increase now that he knew Thor wanted to talk to him. "LOKI!" he shouted.

His quick pace suddenly stopped as he stood in the middle of the hallway, hands balled into fists at his sides.

"Loki," Thor continued in a more calm voice, walking over to him, "we need to talk about this. We need to figure out what our plan will—"

"You fool," Loki sneered, turning to face Thor. He looked at him as if Thor had made the largest blunder in all of the nine realms. "We can't make any form of a plan until we figure out what this 'pureness' is that _your_ father is talking about. He hasn't really helped us in any way, has he? He simply threw another problem into the entire mess of things that we already have to deal with." He felt like steam was seeping out of his ears as he took deep breaths to control his anger.

Thor's gaze at him was unwavering and strong. He knew that Loki was right. If there was anything that they needed now, it was surely a miracle. There wasn't anything as pure as what their mother had sacrificed the first time Fayne had come to Asgard and as Thor had mentioned to Odin before, it was an impractical way to save the realms. "Then what do you suppose we do?"

"Return to Midgard, find answers there. There is nothing left for us here," Loki quickly retorted as he turned on his heel to walk away from Thor once again.

There was something in Loki's tone that agitated Thor. He was being selfish, brooding over the lack of Odin's respect in himself and for Lina. He was starting to take steps backwards in his reformation, and Thor didn't see it ending well for any of the parties involved. Not wanting to cause any more friction on this trip, Thor let the notion go and continued to follow after Loki. He helped Loki grab things from his room which included a few books and some potions.

The rest of their visit to Asgard was spent in silence. They went from Loki's chambers back to Heimdall's globe, the guard waiting for the two brothers to return.

"Going so soon?" he asked them, Loki ignoring him and walking towards the opening of the Bifrost.

Thor sighed as he watched his brother and then looked up to Heimdall. "Unfortunately yes. There are still things to be taken care of and we promised to be back in Midgard as soon as possible."

Heimdall nodded as he looked past Loki into Midgard. He peered into what Lina, Bruce, and Tony were up to and sighed. "It's better that you two are returning now. They've made a discovery."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

The room was filled with an audience now. All of the Avengers, minus Thor and Loki, and Lina were standing in the lab where Zila was being held. She was moving around more now as she got more and more excited about being in the company of so many people.

Lina couldn't help but walk over to her and lean on the table, her face inches from the glass.

Steve immediately stopped leaning on the wall and shot up as he watched Lina's actions. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

Lina continued to stare into the glass. "No," she replied. She moved her hand towards the container, letting it hover over a certain spot. Wherever she moved her hand along the glass, Zila followed. It was like a fish in an aquarium that followed her every move.

"It's like a little pet," Tony commented, walking up next to Lina. "Anything else you know about her?"

Lina shook her head. "Only that she's a girl and that Zila's her name. I'm thinking that information must have stuck with me while she was in my mind. I know there's more to her than this though. She's part of a larger being." Lina thought for a moment then shook her head. "No…she _was_ part of a larger being. Now, I think she's just trying to make it by herself."

Fury sat in a chair across the room from Lina with an unamused look on his face. "If you think for a second that I'm going to trust this inky thing to run around in my headquarters, I hope you know you're utterly mistaken."

"Who said anything about letting it out?" Natasha piped up, her gaze darting from Lina to Tony to Bruce.

"Don't look at me," Bruce said, putting his hands up in defense. "They wanted to do it."

"Oh, what are you, five-years-old?" Tony snapped, tossing the folder in his hand next to the glass container. He walked over to a counter that was sitting against the wall and hopped up onto it. "Next you're gonna tattle on us saying that we've been eating paste and playing with the class pet when we're not supposed to."

"Well isn't that exactly what you're doing?" His sly voice caused everyone to face the door. "And I don't mean the eating paste bit." Loki walked over to Lina and pulled her away from Zila.

"Anything new to report?" Fury asked, turning his attention to Thor who had walked in behind Loki.

"Yes and no," he said, sitting down in a chair next to Clint.

"It's leaning more towards 'no' since the All-Father wasn't exactly courteous while we were there," Loki complained, his eyes fixed on Zila as she moved about. She was pressing against the glass towards Lina, like a small dog pressing against a fence to get to a treat that was just out of reach.

Thor glared at Loki as he continued, "When Fayne had attacked prior to this, he had been defeated by our mother. She made a large sacrifice that included using a good amount of _pure_ magic." He paused as his gaze fell to the floor. He continued with a softer tone in his voice. "It also cost her and my father their first born child."

Lina sighed as she looked towards Loki. "Is there anything else that we can do to figure this out?"

Loki shook his head as he rested his cheek against her soft, brown hair.

"**_I can help_**," Zila piped up once again. "**_Please, let me out. I promise that I will do no harm to anyone_**."

"And why should we trust a demon such as yourself?" Loki purred, turning his attention back to the counter.

"**_I know his plans. I know his pawns. I know his plans for the princess_**."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

"Are you sure you feel alright, love?" Fayne asked, walking his now weary lover to a chair that sat next to his throne. Moments before, she had collapsed while practicing her spells. Something wasn't right. She had completely been spent on a simple spell that shouldn't have taken so much of her energy to execute.

"I…I don't know," she whispered. She felt clammy. Her knees were weak. Her head was pounding.

Fayne waved his hand and the chair turned into a small sitting couch that Maura could lie on. He helped her sit down and then lifted her feet onto the couch, causing her to lie down and rest. His mind was running through every possible instance that could cause this to happen to his queen.

It suddenly hit him.

His face turned from confusion to slight anger as he stood up and looked down at Maura. Her eyes were closed and soft whimpers were coming out of her fragile line of a mouth.

"Raes," he called.

Maura's eyes suddenly shot open. They were black as night, the creature within her answering to its master's call.

"**_Yes, Lord Fayne_**," it obediently answered.

"Take inventory of your demons. Are there any missing?"

It was quiet for a while, Raes' eyes still on Fayne as she checked to make sure that each of her demons were in place to help her function properly.

"**_My lord…there is one missing_**."

Fayne growled as he hit a vase that sat next to the sitting couch Maura was on. It hit the wall and shattered, water running all over the floor.

At the sound of the crashing vase, the creature that was sent to take care of Raes when she first returned from Loki's attack hobbled in to immediately clean the mess.

"You," Fayne called, walking with long strides towards the creature. "You said that she was in excellent condition!" He picked the creature up by its throat, gasps of air just barely escaping its lips.

"I-I-I'm s-s-sorry s-s-s-sire," it managed to spit out.

He dropped the creature and waved his hand, it disappearing as it had been gasping for air. Turning back to Raes, he sighed. "Can you make up for the loss?"

Raes nodded. "**_One demon will not make a difference. She was causing many problems, challenging authority. She was going to be killed anyway_**."

Fayne nodded. "Take care of it. And take care of Maura. I will not see her in pain like this again. Do you understand?"

Raes nodded and just as suddenly as she appeared, she left, Maura's eyes returning to the brown orbs that Fayne remembered. Her eyelids closed as she fell into a deep sleep, drained from the events that had just taken place.

Fayne watched as Raes sent out her other demons to recruit a replacement. Shadows slithered away from Maura's body, crossed the walls, and flew out of the windows into the night. He couldn't disturb her at any point now until all of the demons had returned. If she grew weak with just one missing, he didn't dare to think what would happen when she was missing three or four.

Walking over to his throne, Fayne wrestled with the anxiety that started build in his mind. Would one demon truly not make a difference?

**Hello loves :) I'm sorry that this chapter isn't too long, nor is it my best work. I'm starting to hit a writer's block. I may end up rewriting this chapter - If I do I'll let you know when I update for Chapter 14.**

**If anyone would like to lend me some ideas or help me get my creative juices flowing once again, I'd be more than happy to hear from you!**

**Dreams In Azure: Oh I hope you're feeling much better! Be sure to take care of yourself. Drink lots of OJ! :D And the inky thing...is it lying? Is it having a change of (non-existent) heart? ;) We shall seeeeeeeeee :)**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	14. Chapter 14

14—

"Plans?" Loki asked, a sudden interest in his mind although it was never heard in his voice. All this time he should have known that there was a plan for Lina. After all, he did free a demon of the enemy from her mind.

"**_Yes. Master has plans for her_**," Zila replied, her mass seeming to hover in one place as she focused her energies on talking to Loki.

"What kinds of plans?" Thor asked, stepping forward, his eyes on fire as he looked at the demon.

"**_Let me out and I'll tell you_**," Zila said.

Lina could swear that she could hear Zila smile mockingly as she uttered her last sentence. It was risky to simply let a demon out and do as it pleased. Precautions needed to be made if they were going to go through with releasing her from captivity. Even more so, how could they be sure that she did actually know anything?

"You think me to be so naïve?" Loki asked, walking around the demon.

Her shape followed his every step around her container as she listened intently.

"**_I think you to be a man that needs answers. The sooner the better, don't you think?_**" Zila's mannerism had changed. Her voice had become more eloquent, more soft. She had been picking up on the tones of voices around her.

Loki's jaw clenched as he heard Zila's words. "I still don't know if I can trust you if I were to let you out. And, may I add, how do you know that you can trust myself? Or, in fact, anyone else in this room?" Loki cocked his head towards the demon with his hands behind his back as his smile grew wide.

Zila giggled to herself. "**_I suppose you're right…I guess we'll just have to trust one another_**."

"No," Fury interjected, standing up and walking over to Loki swiftly. "I will not have that thing running around here with free will. Who knows what'll happen. It is a danger to not only us but to humanity itself. It's too risky."

"Last time I checked, Mr. Fury," Steve chimed in, stepping forward from the wall he was leaning on, "we pretty much built this group on risk."

Fury looked at Steve with a hard glare, then glanced from face to face in the room. He hated to admit it, but Steve was right. It was a large risk wanting to create the Avengers initiative. It was a large risk bringing these people together. It was a _huge_ risk to bring these people together to fight as one unit at all.

But the risk had paid off.

With a clenched jaw, Fury replied, "If shit goes down, it's on your head Rogers."

"Mine as well," Lina added, puffing out her chest slightly with confidence.

"As well as mine," Thor said, nodding towards Steve.

Lina looked at Loki as if waiting for a response.

He looked at her for a long while before asking, "What?"

She shot him a look that told him to add himself to the list or else.

Rolling his eyes, Loki said, "And I suppose I have to put myself in as well…"

Fury took a deep breath and exhaled in a matter which seemed like he was growling. Without another word to anyone, he walked out of the room. Agent Hill reluctantly followed after giving Lina an apologetic look. Lina knew that she wanted to stay, but her job came first. If she didn't follow Fury to receive orders, Lina knew that the repercussions wouldn't be given lightly. Fury was on a short fuse as it was.

"Well, now that we've all been put on his list of favorite people," Tony started, "what's the plan?"

"**_I need more strength_**," Zila finally said. "**_I cannot assume a physical form without enough energy_**."

Lina looked at Loki again very expectantly.

"Am I responsible for every chore in his place?" he asked with exasperation.

"Yes, Alfred," Tony retorted, a smirk gracing his lips.

Steve chucked to himself. He got that reference.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

"Are you sure that your armies are nearly ready?" Maura inquired, nibbling at the food that sat on her plate. She and Fayne were sitting in the dining room of his large castle. It was the first meal she had consumed since returning to her life with Fayne. It wasn't that she was very hungry, though. Fayne had insisted that she eat in order to gain more strength. Not all of the demons had returned yet so she was still weak.

"Give it time, love," Fayne purred, sipping wine from his goblet. "We'll be more than prepared. As long as we concentrate our efforts in New York and those silly Avengers fall, we'll be cleared for success."

Maura shifted in her seat as she thought about their future. It was exciting to think that all they had worked for, all they had fought to achieve, was finally going to become a reality. No more creating gruesome creatures to do various tasks, no more hiding in the dark depths of the galaxies to avoid being found, and no more defeats and heartbreaks. Just her, Fayne, and the nine realms that will be ruled by herself and the man she loves.

"I was thinking," Fayne started as he cut up a piece of the pork he was eating, "that I had a new quest in store for you, Maura. Only once that last demon has been replaced, though."

Maura's ears perked up at the notion, her hands still focused on her fork that was bringing food up to her mouth.

"If you're up for it, I have a plan that can start to weaken our Avengers from the inside out."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Back in the room where Loki had freed the original demon from Lina's mind, Loki found himself standing across from Lina once again but this time, Zila was placed in between them. She was still in her container, but she was swimming around with excitement.

"Are you sure I can do this?" Lina asked. Her voice was shaky. The last time she had even performed magic was back when she had first met Loki. He had taught her a couple of things out of the book he had written for her. They even practiced together at some points. But she had never been as successful at doing something except for the time she was in the throne room and had broken a vase without touching it.

Now Loki was asking her to do something that she saw in her mind to be impossible.

"I've taught you everything I know," Loki started.

"Yeah, in the last three hours," Lina added sharply, her eyes showing frustration.

Loki smiled at her.

She hated when he'd do that. It wasn't the smile that she hated. The idea that once he smiled at her, everything that she felt melted away was what she hated. She could never stay mad at him for long because of this somehow magical power he held over her. Sometimes she wondered if it really was his effect on her or if he was somehow meandering into her mind to rid her of all of those negative feelings towards him.

"I have the utmost confidence in you, my flower," Loki cooed, bringing his hands up in front of him as to prepare himself for what they were about to do. "Ready?"

Lina closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. As she released her breath, she too held out her hands to match Loki's.

Steve, Thor, Bruce, Natasha, Clint, and Tony watched from the same room that they had been in before. The glass had been fixed since Lina's bow had shattered it, but it made none of them feel any safer about what was about to happen.

Tony walked over to Thor who was sitting on a table in front of the glass. "How certain are we that this is going to work, again?" he asked.

Thor's eyes never left the scene below. He sat in silence for a while, thinking over Tony's question. Finally, when he opened his mouth, all he could say was, "One can only hope."

Steve took in a breath deeper than the ocean once he heard Thor's response.

After exchanging looks with one another, the group's attention was drawn back down to Loki and Lina.

She felt a warmth traveling down her arms to her fingertips, a dark glow starting to emanate from them. Closing her eyes, Lina focused on what Loki had told her: _Clear your mind. Focus on what needs to be done. You have enough magic in you to achieve the task, it is just a matter of whether you allow your mind to truly achieve the greatness that lies within._

The power that flowed through her grew stronger. Opening her eyes, she looked straight to Loki whose focus was not on her, but on Zila. She too looked down and watched Zila writhed in agony. The glow from their fingertips were now flowing down into the demon. She screamed, she jerked around in her container; she sounded like she was dying.

"Loki," Lina shouted, caution injected into her voice.

"Don't—stop—," Loki ordered with a bite, his face starting to twist as more power was needed.

Lina could feel more pain than warmth now that more power was needed. She too wore an expression of exhaustion, pain, and focus.

"Loki—"

Thor's voice echoed throughout the room from above and Lina knew that there was something going awry. But Loki did not stop.

"KEEP—GOING—" he ordered, stepping towards Zila.

Lina followed suit, her body starting to scream with pain.

Cracks started to form in the glass container that held Zila captive. Her inky form started to seep through and flow freely, taking in all of the energy that was now being focused into her body.

The glow that was only surrounding her and Loki's hands were now starting to consume the trio. Zila's screams were deafening. Without even thinking about her actions, Lina started to cry out. She dropped her hands, breaking whatever connection she had with Loki. Her legs were shaky and her vision was blurry. She could feel a cold sweat forming on her brow as she weaved back and forth, trying to stabilize herself.

Loki followed suit, the area around Zila still glowing with all of the magic that she had received from the couple.

Collapsing to the ground, Lina cried out again. She could still feeling the pain shooting through her body, her being growing weaker and weaker as each moment passed.

Thor stood up as Loki ran over to Lina's side. His focus was not on Lina, though.

Steve walked over next to Thor, his eyes also focused on where Thor was looking. Everyone in that room seemed too distracted to run down and help Loki.

Loki held Lina in his arms and cradled her, just as his mother had done for him during his moments of weakness. He brushed back her hair and caressed the side of her face with his hand. He slowly started to rock back and forth.

Lina whimpered as she looked up at Loki. She brought her hand up to match his, holding the side of his face. "Loki…" she managed.

"Shhh…" he whispered, stroking her face in comfort. He smiled down at her, receiving a smirk in return. "You did wonderfully, love." Looking up at his brother and the rest of the group, Loki called out, with some irritation, "Can someone come down here and help us?"

He received no response. Instead, he noticed their shared interest in one particular point in the room. He followed their gaze to where Zila's container once stood.

The glow that surrounded the demon faded, and none of them could believe what they saw.

**Hello loves :) Did you like it? Lemme know! :D**

**Dreams in Azure: Ahh thank you for all of the ideas! I might be using some of them. I had a small epiphany for a part of my story, but it's for a ways down the road. I'm now faced with the issue of what's going to happen from now til then XD**

**Paigetvdspn: Thanks for the review! :) I'm glad you enjoyed it and I hope this chapter was just as good :)**

**If you want to see more of something in my story, feel free to send me a review or a PM :) Anything else I can do to make the story better would be fantastic :)**

**I was worried that I wouldn't be able to get this chapter out because we were supposed to get hit by ****_another_**** hurricane (just like when I was trying to write my last story.). Luckily this one seems to be missing us to the south so we definitely were fortunate this time. Maybe I'll get two chapters out this weekend :)**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	15. Chapter 15

15—

She sat up. Groaning, she lifted her arm to rub her head. There was a pounding sensation that was making it difficult to think. She could hear voices murmuring behind her. They were very familiar voices.

Then it hit her. She had just lifted her _arm_.

Suddenly filled with excitement, her eyes then darted to the different parts of her body. Taking in her arms, legs, and every other portion of the being that she had become, Zila's face soon held a broad smile. She looked up towards where Thor and the other Avengers stood, their mouths agape.

"She's…" Natasha started, still unable to believe what she was seeing. She couldn't find any words to string together.

"She's…" Steve also began. He thought that she was some kind of illusion. This couldn't be real. _She_ couldn't be real.

"It worked," Loki muttered under his breath.

Zila turned around to face Loki and Lina, still beaming brightly. "**_Are you surprised?_**"

Loki pursed his lips and shifted his focus from the demon to the woman that was curled up in his arms, still weak from the process that had brought Zila into her new form. Impatiently, he looked up towards his brother and called out, "She needs a healer."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Letting loose another arrow had become like second nature to her. Swords felt like extensions of her own arms. Maura had this feeling of enablement now that all of the demons had returned back to her body. She was unstoppable, all of their powers culminated in one place so that at any point she could simply tap into the potential that was in her reach.

Fayne had been too busy dealing with some hiccups with some of the demons in Midgard to pay attention to her, so she had decided to start toying with her new found energy. She had only been practicing a few hours up to this point. Now she knew that her abilities exceeded those that she had previously. All of this was to fit in nicely with Fayne's new plan.

When he had told her at dinner that night what his plan was, it seemed almost too diabolical. It was a very risky proposal. All it would take would be one tiny flaw for it to be completely ruined and for their efforts to be all for not. But, if it did work, the reward would be the best they had every reaped in their lives. Maura had replayed the plan over and over in her mind, making sure that it was one that she really wanted to go through with. Part of her seemed to think that it was too low of a blow, even for her and Fayne.

In the middle of her thoughts and her target practice, a small creature that usually did most of Fayne's biddings appeared in front of her target. She gasped as she let go of the arrow and watched it sail through the air.

Luckily, it had barely missed the head of the creature whose face had remained completely unchanged throughout the entire ordeal.

"Master wishes to see you, Lady Maura," it stated.

Her chest was heaving, her breaths short and quick. "Yes, yes. I'll be there soon."

The creature left without saying another word. Maura shook the thought of her arrow killing the creature out of her mind. It was a foolish thought to feel sorry for the small beast. Not only was it dispensable, but it had no meaning to her. This feeling was new. Never did she ever feel sympathy for anyone other than Fayne. Now she was feeling sympathy for this servant. What type of sensitive demon had Raes found to replace the vacancy in her body?

Shaking the notion from her mind, Maura set the weapons in her hands aside and walked from the practice room to Fayne's throne room. She saw him sitting in his normal place, face lost in thought. His darkened eyes looked even murkier than usual. His hands were brought up to his face, his fingers resting on his lips. Staring into nothing, he didn't even see her walk in.

"I see you took care of those demons," she finally uttered, walking towards Fayne.

His eyes looked towards her sharply. Leaning back and bringing his hands down to the arm rests of his throne, Fayne sighed and closed his eyes.

"Or…you didn't?" Maura stopped in front of Fayne waiting for his attention to return to her once again.

"I need to you to figure out whether or not you're going to go through with my plan," he shortly stated. "The demons are getting restless because the Avengers are still strong. I need to give them a reason to stick around. The sooner the better."

Maura looked down at her feet, then returned her gaze to Fayne. "I'm still not sure…"

Fayne's eyes snapped open as he glared at her. "How can you not be sure?" His tone was irritated and he now leaned forward slightly towards Maura.

"There are too many risks," Maura explained. "What if it doesn't work? If we mess up on anything—"

"We?" Fayne asked. He laughed slightly. His voiced continued in a deep tone, one that Maura had never heard him use before. "It is only you that we need to worry about. All you need to do is complete the mission as we discussed. If _you_ deviate in any way from the plan, then that's how we'll get in trouble. Other than that, it's fool proof. Only a traitor would cause any part of it to go wrong." The last sentence came out more as a growl than an actual statement. He stood up and walked towards Maura, his eyes cold. He eventually stood toe to toe with her, his eyes locked onto hers. "You're not having any second thoughts about our overall plan, are you?"

"No," Maura meekly replied. For the first time, she felt fear. This was a side of Fayne she had never seen. It was vengeful. It was even darker than what she thought he had in him to be.

"Good. Then we shouldn't have any problems."

With that, Fayne walked past her and left her to stand in the throne room alone.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Loki sat in the chair next to Lina's bed. She was allowed to stay in her living quarters and not in the hospital room now that she had gained back more of her strength. He hadn't slept a wink since she had been healed not only because he was worried about her, but because he was trying to piece together everything that had happened.

As if on cue, Zila walked in with a pitcher of water and set it on the table next to Lina.

Loki followed her every move with watchful eyes. When he knew Lina was in good hands in the medical wing, he set out to "demon-proof" the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility. Unless necessary, there were preventative measures taken so that Zila couldn't leave and couldn't fully use her powers against anyone or anything. It was a precaution that Fury had made Loki take, but Loki would have done it regardless of whether or not he was asked to.

"**_How is she doing?_**" Zila asked, standing at the foot of Lina's bed and looking up at her. Her loyalty to Lina was remarkable. She was constantly asking about her and if she wasn't doing that, she was going around doing something that she felt would help Lina get better faster, like getting water or food for her. She even fetched things for Loki so that he would be comfortable. Loki concluded that because Lina had been her original host, Zila felt that she had a duty to protect her like how a guard dog protects its master.

"She's doing better. She should awaken from her slumber any hour now," Loki said, bringing his gaze back to Lina's sleeping face.

Zila nodded, then walked out of the room to leave the couple alone.

Loki sighed. It bothered him that whenever he got a chance to be completely alone with Lina, it was either that he was in a hospital bed or she was. They hadn't had any decently romantic time together aside from their passionate kiss in Asgard that had left him longing for more. Feelings in him stirred that he hadn't felt in many, many years.

All of that would have to wait, though. Even if it wasn't what he wanted, he cherished these few times that he got with her. Standing up, he climbed into bed with Lina, pulled the covers over both of them, and cradled her in his arms once more.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

She walked through the halls of the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility trying to find Thor. She wanted a distraction from Lina's medical status and also wanted to get a chance to try out her new form. Zila could hear the clanging of metal on metal which told her that Thor and Steve were both in the training room sparring against each other.

Turning the corner and standing in the doorway, Zila watched as Thor would take his sword to Steve's shield with elegance and power. Steve would dodge, duck, and swing with mighty movements, never letting an action to go to waste. Eventually they grew tired and noticed Zila's presence.

"Ahh, Zila, come join us. Sit," Thor invited as he plopped down onto the mats that he and Steve were on. Steve stretched out next to Thor, his chest heaving. His eyes never left Zila though.

Part of him didn't trust Zila fully. Even though she was doing a great job at tending to Lina, he felt that there was something that she wasn't telling them. And technically it was true. She still hadn't told them what she knew in regards to Fayne's plans. It had been agreed that she would share her information once Lina was well again.

Thor's thoughts were nothing of Steve's. He, unlike his comrades, had more faith in Zila. What he couldn't get past was the form she had taken. It wasn't that he was attracted to her, although she was beautiful. It was the fact that she had a very uncanny resemblance to Lina and Loki. She had so many of the same characteristics of the two that if anyone looked at her, they could have sworn that she was their daughter. Her long brown hair and body build resembled that of Lina's. Her eyes were piercing and green, like Loki's. The happier expressions she made reminded Thor of Lina and the more somber, serious expressions were undoubtedly those of Loki's.

"**_Do you think that you could teach me how to fight like that?_**" she asked, her emerald eyes piercing into Thor's crystal blue ones.

"What would you want that?" Steve asked, sitting up in curiosity.

Her gaze shifted to the Captain. "**_Well…now that I have this new form, I don't have to rely on my magic as much. I can really fight. I can somewhat be—_**"

"—normal," Thor finished, looking at the ground. After all of the ordeals he had gone through with Loki, he understood what Zila was trying to accomplish. She wanted to feel like she was just like everyone else, not a hair out of place.

Zila nodded as she looked from Thor to Steve. "**_So…_**"

Thor stood up and offered a hand to Zila, a smirk gracing his lips. "Let us begin."

**fastreader12: Thank you for the review! I'm glad you're enjoying it :) Hope to hear more from you!**

**Dreams in Azure: Ahh yeah I figured I was overdue for a cliffhanger ;) I hope this chapter is to your liking!**

**Thoughts? Comments? Concerns? Review/PM me! :) Thank you for supporting my story!**

**With love  
sparrowlina**


	16. Chapter 16

16—

She groaned a little, her eyes fluttering open and adjusting to her new surroundings. Happy that she wasn't stuck in the hospital, Lina also took note that she was not the only one in her bed. That made her even happier.

She wrapped her arm around Loki's waist and sighed deeply, taking in his scent. He wasn't in his usual formal attire. Dressed in black pants and a green three quarter sleeve shirt, she assumed he had been here awhile and decided to make himself comfortable. It was nice to think that they could finally have some "comfortable" time with one another.

"Hello there, love," he gently whispered, leaning his head on hers.

"Hi there," she replied, a smile spreading across her face. She looked up into the emerald green eyes she favored so much. To look into his eyes was to feel a sense of safety, to feel like she was at home.

Loki returned a smile to Lina and sat up a little straighter. "You've been asleep for quite some time."

Lina sat up fully and stretched her arms above her head, a small squeak escaping her lips. "It was a great sleep at that." Looking down at her attire, Lina remembered the night gown she was wearing as being the same one that she had worn when Loki had first entered her chambers in Asgard. Climbing out of bed, she walked over to a body-length mirror that hung on the back of her living quarters' door and seemed to be reliving that night. It was almost the exact scene, Loki sitting in her bed and all.

Loki chuckled slightly as he watched Lina's movements. He could sense her reminiscent thoughts. "It's awfully strange how worried you are about the way you look…"

Lina looked at Loki's reflection in the mirror, his smirk growing brighter with every word he uttered. She too had to give a small smile. "Do you enjoy quoting yourself as if you're a piece of fine literature?"

He shrugged as he outstretched his arms to her. "Come here."

Listening to Loki's request, Lina walked back to her bed and climbed through the blankets to reach her fiancé. She sat on his lap, facing him, and draped her hands on his shoulders. She allowed his hands to rest on her hips, their eye contact never breaking.

"Can you please stop scaring me with all of these antics?" he asked her.

By the fear that showed itself briefly in his eyes, Lina knew that Loki wasn't trying to be cute or funny any longer.

"You know better than anyone that things will only get worse from this point forward," Lina said, her eyes lowering from Loki's gaze.

He put his finger under her chin and lifted her face once more so he could see her brown eyes. "I know better than anyone what it's like to lose the person I love and not know if I'll ever get her back. I've been through quite the struggle during these past 1,000 years. I will not allow you to leave me like that again."

"You act as if I choose to be lost," Lina protested.

"I know that you don't." Loki's hands resumed their positions on Lina's hips. "I just want you to know that I will not be able to bear losing you for a second time."

Lina brought her hand up to cup Loki's face, his eyes closing at her touch. His skin was colder than she remembered. Thinking back to what she had gone through and what Loki had gone through during her absence, she felt an ache in her heart. He probably had gone through many forms of pain to get to where he was and, from what she gathered in her research for the Avengers, he had channeled his anger in ways that demonstrated his frustrations and bottled up feelings.

For her, though, it was all water under the bridge. What mattered was that he was safe and she was with him. With that combination, there was nothing that could bring her down from being at ease.

Without warning, Lina kissed Loki with more passion than what she had shown him in Asgard. Her fingers travelled up his face and snaked through his jet black hair. His grip grew tighter on her hips as he pulled her closer to his body.

Her warmth felt good against his cool skin. Part of him knew that he'd need to tell her eventually about the secrets that had been brought to light regarding his origins, but at the moment it was irrelevant. Wrapping his arms around her waist, Loki continued to kiss Lina. 1,000 years was a long time to wait to spend with his fiancé, but the wait was well worth it.

Heavy breathing filled the room as the couple's temperatures began to rise. Loki turned Lina over onto her back, still kissing her with every feeling his body could give. Lina smiled into every kiss, causing Loki to do the same.

As they were reacquainting themselves with one another, a knock came at Lina's door. She could swear that she heard Loki growl under his breath as he tossed himself over the side of the bed, grumbling to himself as he walked towards the door. He opened it and without even looking at who was standing on the other side, he said, "This had better be good."

Thor looked his brother up and down and noticed Loki's disheveled hair and wrinkled clothing. He looked past Loki and saw Lina sitting in her bed, a smile spread across her lips as she waved at Thor. He chuckled to himself as he brought his attention back to Loki. "I apologize for the interruption," he began, "but Director Fury has requested that everyone come down to the meeting room for dinner and for Zila to give us insight into Fayne's plans."

"Do we need to come at this very moment?" Loki asked, his eyes begging his brother to say that they could come down whenever they were ready.

A hearty laugh escaped Thor's lips as did a giggle escape Lina's.

"I find nothing of this funny," Loki grumbled, turning his back to Thor and walking back into Lina's room. "We'll be down momentarily."

Thor smiled and nodded towards Lina before closing the door and walking back to the meeting room.

Climbing out of bed, Lina walked over to a now sulking Loki who had used magic to dress himself in his usual attire. "I'm sorry," she apologized, hugging him and pressing her face into his chest. "I promise we'll have some time to ourselves soon, okay?"

She gazed up at him with a warmth that he had longed for while she was gone. "If you say so, my flower," he said. He brushed back some of Lina's hair that was in her face and used his magic to dress her in jeans and a white t-shirt. Together, they walked arm-in-arm to greet the other Avengers.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

"I still don't understand how they're together," Tony commented, biting into his steak sandwich that he was eating for dinner.

Thor laughed as he continued to eat his meal. "It was something that a lot of us at home wanted for them, and I'm sure that our mother is quite happy that Loki has found someone that can keep him in his place."

"So everything that happened on Earth because of Loki…was that a result of her being taken?" Steve asked, sipping on some soup.

Thor nodded and dabbed at his face with a napkin. "We think it to be. But as you know Loki usually has an agenda of his own and hasn't even told me why some of those events occurred. If anything the only person he would tell is Lina."

"And that's _if _he ever tells her," Tony added.

"Yeah. If he keeps all of these secrets, I don't think she'll want to stick around." Steve glanced from face to face after saying this, seeing agreement on nearly every one.

"**_You all talk as if their relationship isn't going to last because Loki won't open up to her_**," Zila commented, setting her food down on the table and taking a seat next to Thor.

"And you think it will?" Tony asked.

"**_I lived in her mind for quite some time, Mr. Stark. I know exactly what makes her tick. And I did share a connection with Loki so I also know what's going through his mind_**." Zila paused for a moment, staring down at her food. "**_If I were you all, I'd envy the kind of love that they share. In all of my years of existing, I've never seen any couple that would put forth and endure the types of sacrifices that they've put themselves through, Loki especially._**" She looked up at Tony and Steve, then shook her head. "**_Shame on you both if you doubt their relationship for even a second_**."

After that, there was silence in the room. The only noises you could hear were people eating their food, people shifting positions in their chairs, and footsteps that echoed in the hall. Thor had to admit that Zila was right. There wasn't anyone that he knew that would give up everything for their lover more than Lina and Loki (except for Jane and himself).

Soon, Loki and Lina walked through the doorway with trays of food, followed by Nick and Maria.

"Okay, demon. Information. Now." Nick was growing impatient. As time went by, more and more people were being abducted. By his and Maria's calculations, the numbers were easily going into the hundreds and there didn't seem to be an end in sight soon.

"You could at least ask her nicely," Lina spat, cutting into her food.

"You could at least be helpful and stop getting injured," Nick spat back, his glare boring into Lina's skull.

"**_There is no need to get nasty with one another_**," Zila said, wiping her face with a napkin. She sighed and closed her eyes, organizing the information she could remember. "**_The last that I can remember, Fayne is planning to take over the nine realms as he had attempted to before. As you've figured out from the All-Father, he needs someone else to rule by his side. That someone was supposed to be Lina._**"

Glances were thrown from one person to the next around the room, all of them leading back to Zila.

"So now that Lina's not occupied by a demon anymore, what's going to happen?" Bruce asked, looking at Zila over his glasses.

Zila shrugged as she said, "**_It's hard to say at this point. Raes, the demon who had recruited me to be a part of Lina's takeover, would need to replace me and find a new host. The host would need to be strong like Lina or else Fayne won't be able to get anything done. He needs someone who can rule by his side just as effectively as Lina could_**."

Lina leaned back in her chair and pushed her plate of food away from her. The conversation was making her lose her appetite as she thought of how Fayne was using her merely as a puppet. She had been on track to become one of the most evil beings in the nine realms. A thought suddenly crossed her mind.

"Zila," she began, "why didn't his plan work? Why were we able to free Raes from my mind?"

Zila looked down at her food in guilt, using her fork to push her cauliflower around the plate.

Loki looked up at Zila, an intense stare painted upon his face. "You."

Zila looked up at him, the guilt she was pouring onto the plate now being focused towards him.

"You were the weak point."

"Come again?" Tony asked.

Zila sighed and continued, "**_Yes. I was the reason Raes failed_**."

"But…but how?" Steve asked.

Zila chuckled to herself as she turned to face Steve. "**_Let's just say that even though I'm a demon, I'm probably one of the worst in the business._**" She turned to face the whole group once again. "**_I didn't agree with any of Fayne's plans. I didn't think it was fair to take this princess from her slumber and use her as a pawn against her family and her home._**" Zila stood up and walked over to the large window that overlooked the facility. At this time of night, you could see the many stars through the front entrance's windows. "**_I knew that I needed to do something so that it gave Lina a fighting chance against Raes_**."

"So you let my memories slip out," Lina pieced together, her eyes brimming with tears. "All of the things I remembered like reading Pinocchio to Loki and Thor and the scene in the throne room…that was all because of you?"

Zila turned around and nodded. "**_I couldn't let them ruin your lives. I'm just sorry that it took so long for things to pan out so you could regain yourself completely_**."

"There's no need to apologize," Thor comforted. "You did a great favor to us and we are definitely thankful for your actions."

Zila smiled weakly as she returned to her seat next to Thor and proceeded to play with her food.

"So where does that bring us exactly?" Fury asked.

"Fayne's looking for a new right had woman," Natasha answered quickly. "We just need to figure out who."

Fury looked at Thor, Loki, Lina, and Zila waiting for an answer.

"**_Realistically speaking, it could be anyone_**," Zila answered, "**_either dead or alive. It all depends on what kind of new plan Fayne will be developing_**."

"New plan?" Bruce asked. "I don't like the sound of that."

"**_It's best that you shouldn't_**," Zila agreed. "**_If my guesses are right, the targets he'll focus on next will be those who stand in the way of his new army successfully taking over Midgard._**"

Steve swallowed hard and looked at Zila. "You don't mean…"

She nodded.

A small silence settled on the group as they came to realization that they would now need to prepare should Fayne want to bring his fight to Midgard on a more exponential scale. He knew that they existed. He knew what they were capable of. It was just a matter of when and how he would decide to take them down.

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Later that evening, Thor and Loki found themselves sitting on the roof of the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility lying down and staring up at the stars.

"I do apologize again for interrupting you earlier," Thor began, a smirk crawling back onto his face. "You did seem a bit frustrated."

"You try living 1,000 years without satisfaction then come talk to me about being frustrated." At first, Loki's tone was one of annoyance, but it soon turned playful. He missed talking to Thor like this—like he was his brother.

"I don't think I'll take you up on the offer," Thor joked back, a broad smile on his face now. It faded slightly as he said, "Did you tell her everything yet?"

Loki's brow furrowed. "No, not yet."

"Are you going to?"

Loki sat up and brought his knees up, resting his arms on top of them as he stared at the ground before him. "I will…eventually."

Thor sat up and looked at Loki with some concern. "Brother, she needs to know. If you two were to have children together, it would majorly impact—"

"I know what the risks are," Loki snapped back. He combed through his dark hair with his hand as he let out a deep sigh. "I'm just…"

"…afraid?"

Loki paused for a moment, then collapsed back down onto the roof they were on and continued to stare up into the stars that he had been traveling between for many years.

There was a silence that had settled on the brothers that held many secrets and worries. Thor knew why Loki was afraid. It was odd to see Loki in a predicament where he would show any form of fear to anyone.

"What if she loathes me?" Loki meekly asked. He turned to face Thor who was still sitting up, staring at the horizon that the facility faced.

"She will never loathe you," Thor answered after carefully thinking about his words. "She may be afraid at first, but she loves you with every ounce and more of her tiny being. No matter what she faces with you, I know she'll want to overcome them so that you can both be happy."

His answer was greeted with silence, Loki's gaze returning to the night sky.

"Do you remember the night that Lina had seen you with another woman?" Thor continued.

Loki didn't reply but he did remember the night well. It was prior to them being a couple, back when Loki would visit Lina every night for her to read him a fairytale.

"I remember how devastated she was the next day, so much so that mother had expressed great concern over her wellbeing after hearing from one of the night maids that Lina had returned to her room crying."

"Is there a point to all of this, or are you simply trying to revive my guilt from the incident?" Loki barked.

"Fine, I will just skip to the point," Thor answered, lying back down next to Loki. He sighed, then said, "Lina was hurt greatly that day not only by your words, but your actions as well. But look at what happened after that ordeal: you two finally became what mother and I had always hoped you'd be—a couple.

"She cared for you enough to see past your rough exterior and see a man who could open up his heart should he had chosen to. If she can do that and also go through all of the events that we've dealt with during these past few weeks, I'm sure that telling her about where you come from won't hurt you but make you both stronger."

**fastreader12: I think only time will tell on what Zila's going to do. So far she's been good but who knows what'll happen ;)**

**Thanks for the support! Managed to get out another chapter this weekend :D Hope to hear from you all!**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	17. Chapter 17

17—

Lina sat in the meeting room alone after everyone had finished their dinners. Loki and Thor had matters to discuss so they had taken their leave to another portion of the facility for privacy. She went back and forth in her mind as to what was going to happen to her friends now that Fayne needed to create a new plan. There were so many variables involved that she didn't know what to hone in on. She could conclude, though, that it was already too late to save anyone. Everyone would have to fight or die trying.

And she wasn't hoping for the latter.

Staring into nothing, Lina didn't notice Zila standing in the doorway watching her, concern written on her face.

Not wanting to disturb her, Zila turned around to leave and ran right into Tony.

"**_Oh, I'm sorry_**," she stammered out, brushing her dark hair out of her face.

Tony nodded to acknowledge her apology, then looked past her towards the distressed princess.

"Is she okay?"

Zila turned to where Tony was looking and shrugged. "**_I'm not sure…she's been like that since dinner finished_**."

Tony nodded again then stepped past Zila to enter the room. Pulling up a chair, he sat across from Lina, her stare still not leaving the table in front of her.

"You okay?" he asked, his eyes trying to peer through hers into her mind to see what the matter was.

She looked up at him for a few seconds, then returned her gaze to their previous spot. "I…I don't know. I'm really worried for everyone, you know?"

Tony nodded.

Lina sighed and leaned back in her chair. "The last time I had to wait in anxiety like this was when I had first met Thor and Loki."

"What happened?" Tony asked.

"My twin sister…she had decided to try and take over the realms just as Fayne is doing now. She had almost succeeded in taking over Asgard but I…I killed her."

Tony nodded and put his hand out to Lina for comfort. She took it, his warmth radiating through to her.

"I don't want to see people get hurt like that again, Tony," she whispered, a sadness filling her hushed tones.

"They won't," he reassured. "You think we're a bunch of amateurs?"

Lina looked at Tony as he smirked at her. She tried to do the same, but it faded quickly.

"You should get some rest. Worrying like this won't help us beat Fayne. We'll need you in top shape if anything happens."

Lina nodded and stood up. The gaze that sat on her face told Tony she was a million miles away from the conversation they had just had. He wondered what she was thinking, what she was feeling, what she still had to tell the group.

Lina walked towards the door without another word.

Tony watched as she left his sight. He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. Reopening them, he stared at the ceiling for bit then let out a deep sigh. He had a sense that whatever Fayne's next plan was, it still involved Lina. He just didn't know how.

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"Are you so sure, Thor?" Loki questioned again, the assertiveness fading from his voice.

"Do you doubt me so much, my brother?" Thor asked as he smiled at Loki. "Go to her. Talk to her. It will be a lot easier than you make it out to be."

Loki rolled his eyes and started to stand up. As he stretched his muscles, he looked out over the edge of where he and his brother had been sitting. Something of sudden interest caught his eye.

A woman had left the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility and started to roam through the grassy area in front of the building. It was a curious sight to see. Had it been any other person, he would have ignored her, but it wasn't just any other person.

It was Lina.

He ducked down slightly as to not make his figure so identifiable and watched Lina's every move.

"What's wrong?" Thor asked, walking towards Loki.

"Get down," Loki hissed, motioning for his brother to mirror his own position.

Thor ducked down and followed Loki's gaze towards the ground below. "Is that—"

"Shh," Loki shushed.

Thor quickly stopped talking as to the two men watched Lina walk through the grass some more.

She stopped after a while and dropped to her knees. Her head seemed to hang and her hands were brought to her face.

Loki's heart suddenly dropped when he realized that she was crying. He made a move to leap down from where he was but Thor put his hand on his shoulder.

"What are you do—"

"Shh," Thor shushed.

Loki glared at him for copying what he had done earlier, but he soon understood why.

Thor pointed towards another woman that was slowly strolling towards Lina. Her outline was lit by the moonlight and she walked with a beautiful elegance. She walked as if she was royalty, as if she was a queen.

The men watched as Lina lifted her head to view the mysterious figure. She had jumped back at first, but eventually stood to be at the same level as her visitor. They strained to hear the conversation between the two women, but all they could catch was the volume of their voices. The words were inaudible.

Loki took note of Lina's body language. She had her hands at her sides, hands balled into fists. She held her head higher than usual, and her overall posture was one of strength and courage. But an odd thing happened: as the figure spoke more and more to Lina, her posture relaxed and her hands uncurled. What was this person saying to her?

Against his better judgment, Loki remained where he was throughout the duration of Lina's conversation. He watched the other woman stick out her hand as if to make a deal with Lina. With great hesitation, Lina reached out her hand to match the woman's.

He didn't know what he was expecting—a beam of light or a sudden burst of energy—but when the two women made contact, nothing happened. The two seemed to say good night and Loki watched as Lina walked back into the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility and the other woman disappeared with the usual fog that surrounded the building at that time of night.

Without another word to his brother, Loki sprinted towards the stairs that had brought he and Thor to the roof and set out in search of Lina.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Zila sat in the room that had been newly assigned to her. It was an odd feeling to finally be able to move about freely without a host. She could enjoy the comforts of lying in a bed or eating food without having to obey the wants and needs of the person she was gaining her energy from. She had definitely found, too, that she had an unusual fondness for chocolate.

She sat at the small table in her room eating some of the chocolates she had taken from the dessert table during dinner. As she did, a small knock came at the door. Rushing to push all of the wrappers into the trash can, Zila smoothed out what small wrinkles she had in her pajama pants and answered the door.

To her surprise, Steve stood on the other side of it.

"**_Oh, hello Steve_**," she said, a smile escaping her lips.

Steve returned the smile, noticing a smudge of chocolate on her face. "Hello to you too, as well. You have a little…" He pointed to a spot on his face that mirrored where the chocolate was on Zila's.

Her eyes widened slightly as she quickly wiped her face with her hand. "**_Um…come in_**."

She moved to let Steve in as the embarrassment slightly subsided. He took the other seat at her table and picked up one of the remaining chocolates. "Enjoying the sweets we have to offer?" he asked.

"**_Definitely. It's divine…and it's also giving me a sugar rush_**."

He gave out a small laugh, but his smile soon faded. "Zila…I need to ask you something about Lina."

Zila's ears perked up as she walked over to the table. She returned to her seat, studying Steve's features. He had concern and worry etched onto his face. Thinking back to when she was in Lina's body, she remembered what had happened between Lina and Steve. Being honest with herself, she knew it wasn't really Lina that had fallen for Steve. It was part of Raes' plan to cause Lina to fall for the Captain, but of course with Zila being the untraditional demon she was, she had taken the plan to heart.

Literally.

"Zila? Did you hear what I asked?"

"**_Huh?_**" Zila asked, shaking her head. "**_Sorry, I spaced out a little. Come again?_**"

Steve sighed as he stared down at his hands. "Is there anything that we need to know about Lina that could hint to what Fayne has planned for us?"

It was a very loaded question for anyone to ask Zila. Whether Lina liked it or not, Zila knew everything about her. She knew every intimate detail from the friction she had with Luke and her mother to her memories regarding her father. Zila knew what kind actions Loki and Thor and done for her and how they had really made her feel accepted into a family where her own did not. She even knew what had happened between herself and her sister that caused the broken bonds between Lina and her family to be remade once again.

Zila sat in an uncomfortable silence with the Captain for quite some time.

"**_Well…I…_**"

But before Zila could answer, another visitor had come to her door. This knock, though, was one of much greater urgency.

Zila and Steve exchanged glances before Zila went to answer the door. On the other side was an out of breath Thor.

"Zila…" he panted. "We need you to check on Lina."

Without another word, Thor started to jog back down the hallway to where Lina's room was. Zila proceeded to follow with haste, Steve right behind her.

When the three returned to Lina's room, they found Lina sitting in bed with Loki standing in front of her. His face was tense, his arms were crossed, and Zila didn't like the look of the situation.

"What's he doing here?" Loki asked, not even needing to turn and see who else had joined the party.

"**_He was with me when Thor came to ask for my assistance,_**" Zila quickly defended.**_ "What's going on?_**"

"Loki thinks there's something wrong with me," Lina snapped, glaring up at Loki. It wasn't that she was mad at him, she was just annoyed that he didn't trust what she said had happened to her.

"**_What happened to you?_**" Zila asked, walking past Loki and sitting next to Lina on the bed.

Thor and Steve hung back towards the door, keeping an eye out for anyone that would walk by.

"I went out for a walk after talking to Tony after dinner and I was stressing about what would happen to everyone once Fayne figured out his next plan. I started to cry and kind of said a prayer to my mother to help me."

Zila looked at Loki whose face was as cold as ice. He wasn't buying into anything that Lina was saying and she couldn't understand why. She noted the bags under his eyes as well as the redness of his eyes. He looked exhausted.

"Before I knew it, she appeared before me and gave me kind words to get me through my struggles. She held out her hand for me to take and she gave me strength. Then before I knew it she was gone."

Zila looked Lina deep in her eyes to search for the lie that Loki thought was hidden in them. She saw nothing, but the story did sound odd to her. Then again, she too hadn't got much sleep lately because of all of the various events that had been going on.

"**_What do you want me to do, Loki? As far as I can tell, she's perfectly fine. There's nothing wrong with her that I can see._**"

Loki's posture relaxed a little and the sternness on his face slightly drifted away. "Nothing else, then. That's all I wanted you to check for."

Zila nodded. As she did, she could have sworn she saw Lina's face twist into a smirk. Just as suddenly as she saw it, it was gone.

"I think you just need some sleep, brother," Thor said, stepping forward. "I think we all do."

Zila and Steve nodded, Lina giving out yawn.

Without another word, Loki left the room, leaving Thor to chase after him.

Zila shot an apologetic look that asked him to leave. She knew he wanted to stay but at that moment, she felt that she needed to talk to Lina on her own. He took the hint and left without saying anything.

She turned back to Lina and asked, "**_Are you sure you're okay? Nothing you need to tell me?_**"

Lina nodded. "I'm fine, I promise. Just…shaken up by everything I guess. I just needed a little strength and luckily I have people watching out for me."

Zila gave her a weak smile in agreement and stood up from the bed. "**_Well if you need anything, just let me know, okay?_**" Her protective pet instinct was starting to emerge again.

Lina nodded reassuringly and Zila exited soon after, casting Lina a glance over her shoulder as she left.

Sitting in her room alone, Lina took a deep breath. Such chaos had erupted after her one little excursion out of the facility. She stood up and walked over to her door and closed it, then found herself face to face with her reflection in the mirror.

The girl's serious face that she saw soon changed into a smirk, the feeling in her eyes changing from innocent to dark.

It had worked—and she had fooled everyone.

**Hope you folks enjoyed it! Can't wait to hear back from you :) Review or PM if you'd like :)**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18—

Fayne strolled down a large hallway, the only sound being heard was his boots hitting the solid floor as he went along. He had a smug smirk on his face, his hands clasped behind his back. His slick, black hair gleamed in the moonlight that streamed through the open archways that lined his path.

He reached a door at the end of the hall and stopped, gazing at it in deep thought. His eyes were on the door knob before him. Only he knew what existed on the other side. Only he knew what was going to happen to the being on the other side.

While his smirk curled into a wide smile, he reached for the knob, the metal cooling his warm hand. He twisted it then pushed the door open and stood in the doorway, the moonlight outlining his figure to the being within.

"Welcome to your new home."

Lina groaned, her eyes adjusting to the newfound light source. She didn't know how long she had been sitting in that room. She had no idea what had been done to her. All she could remember was the conversation she had before being brought to this dark place.

_She felt defeated and lost. Walking through the tall grass in front of the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility, Lina felt the dew of the night's rain being splashed onto her ankles. She didn't know how far she was planning to go, she just wanted to get as far as she could._

_So many thoughts flooded her mind. The most prominent one was of what was going to happen to everything that she held dear to her. Loki, Thor, her friends—all of them were in grave danger._

_And it was her fault._

_Dropping to her knees, Lina sat and buried her face in her hands. Her sobs filled the silence that surrounded her as the fog started to roll in. She never wanted to show this much weakness to anyone. Everyone was counting on her to be strong. But what if she couldn't be?_

_"__That's an excellent question," an all-too-familiar voice chimed in, reading Lina's thoughts._

_Lina jumped back suddenly, her gaze set intently in front of her. At first, she couldn't see anything within all of the fog. Slowly, a figure began to emerge from the mist. She first thought that it was her mother by the way the person walked. It was a regal walk, her strides even and poised. That thought soon vanished when she saw the twisted smile and heard the menacing chuckle._

_"__Maura," Lina said, standing up to face her once-dead sister. Lina's hands were at her sides, balled into fists. She stood firm, puffing out her chest slightly and lifting her head._

_"__Nice to see you too, sis," Maura laughed, stopping a few feet away from Lina. "Troubled lately, are we?"_

_"__What are you doing here?" Lina snapped, her anger and fear starting to bubble within her simultaneously. Questions were racing through her mind so fast that she couldn't keep up. How was Maura still alive? What was she doing there with her?_

_"__I have to make this short and sweet because I have a tight schedule to work with. Here's the deal," Maura quickly said, her eyes narrowing towards Lina and her gaze growing more intense._

_"__I don't want anything to do with any deals you have to offer."_

_Maura laughed. "Ahh, but I think you do." She looked past her, noticing Loki and Thor on the roof of the facility watching their conversation. "How badly do you want to save your friends?"_

_Lina's face dropped suddenly. "Leave them alone."_

_"__Let me put something out for you to consider, okay?"_

_Lina's stance didn't change, but her eyes must have shown a slight curiosity that told Maura to continue._

_"__I have a proposition for you that would literally only require you to shake my hand. I know you've been worrying about your friends. And I know you've been worried about your precious little Loki. I would be too, especially if I rid myself of a demon the way you did." She paused, taking the time to read Lina's features. With every word she said, Lina's posture relaxed more, her hands unfurled, and her face grew more concerned. "I can guarantee their physical safety."_

_Lina's face twisted into uncertainty. "How?"_

_Maura smiled. "I can't reveal my secrets. Ruins the idea of keeping them safe. A confidentiality thing, as it were."_

_"__What's the catch?"_

_Maura's smile grew even wider. "You need to leave. You can't tell anyone that you're leaving. And you need to leave right now."_

_Lina was about to reject the offer when Maura spoke again._

_"__You know you're the reason why they're going to get hurt. Remove yourself before they actually do."_

_Lina looked at Maura for a little longer before letting out a sigh. It was a bad idea and she knew it deep down inside._

_"__And what if I don't take your offer?"_

_Maura paused before beginning again, her face showing her irritation at Lina's stalling. "You'll watch each and every last one die while you sit unable to help them."_

_She felt something catch in her throat at the thought of what that would entail. Taking in a deep sigh, Lina held out a trembling hand to her sister._

_Maura shook hands with her and at her touch, she found herself standing in Lina's place and Lina in hers. She was wearing Lina's clothes and her appearance had changed to match Lina's._

_Lina found herself looking at Maura, then realizing that she was wearing Maura's clothes. She panicked, realizing she had no control of her body. She turned away from Maura and walked away from her and the facility, Lina's figure being enveloped by the fog. Before she knew it, she was being taken away to some new place, the darkness becoming her only friend during this distressing time._

Sitting up, Lina rubbed her head. "Where am I?"

Fayne laughed as he walked into the room, the door closing behind him. "Like I said, you're in your new home."

As the door closed, Fayne flicked his wrist and several torches in the room lit at his command. With that, Lina could get a better idea of her surroundings. As she had guessed, the room was not that big. It had a single bed and a small bathroom. That was all of the luxuries she was afforded.

She then turned her attention to the man who stood before her. He was tall, dark, and handsome, but not in a way that attracted her to him. She could tell that he was someone that would attract Maura. He was powerful and after some thought, it occurred to Lina that she was in the presence of one of the darkest beings in the nine realms.

He laughed, sending uncomfortable shivers down Lina's spine.

"What's so funny?" she asked.

"You," he said. "I didn't think you'd be so naïve." He walked around her, looking her over with more concentration. "You definitely are built like your sister—strong, bright, and very attractive."

Suddenly Lina grew even more uncomfortable when she realized she was still wearing Maura's dress, a low-cut floor length gown that was as dark as night.

"It's too bad that she gave me strict instructions to leave you alone. The things we could do together…"

"Are you not committed to my sister?" Lina asked, trying to put her bravest face forward.

"Yes and no. She's dispensable and there will always be more to replace her. Luckily, she has her powers working at her advantage."

"Where is she?"

"Patience, little one," Fayne said. He knelt down and brushed some hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear.

She hated hearing him call her the nickname that was given to her by Thor. He ruined it, tainted it, made it seem less loving and more demeaning.

He brought his hand under her chin and had her look up into his dark eyes. "You'll get your answers soon enough."

**Hello loves! Sorry that I haven't posted. I was on a trip this past weekend and there have been a lot of exams to study for. I'm also sorry that this one is so short :( I'm hoping to put out another one tomorrow but it's only if I get a break from studying.**

**fastreader12: Crapola indeed :P Hope you like this chapter ;)**

**Dreams in Azure: Yes, that's why she looks like them so much. I'm very curious as to how you think they'll defeat Fayne. And don't worry about not reviewing every chapter-I understand the struggles of a busy life. I appreciate any response at all so thank you!**

**Message me or review if you'd like to! :)**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19—

Despite his best efforts, Thor was unable to calm Loki from the rage that had been caused by Lina's antics. Loki was furious not only because she had lied to him, but because no one else could see through the charade. The pressing matter that was raging in his mind was why she wouldn't want to tell him the truth. Little did he know that the woman in the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility that he was standing on the roof of was not his flower.

Thor walked back to Lina's room and stood outside of the door for a brief moment. He knew that it should be Loki to return and talk to her first, but he saw it fit that because he was going to be her brother soon, he had a right to speak to her on the subject as well. A few quick knocks on the door left him waiting in silence for Lina to answer.

Maura spun on her heel quickly when she heard the knocks. After the little show she put on, she didn't expect to have another visitor so soon. Throwing a robe over her night gown, she walked over to the door. Before answering, she composed herself. She couldn't risk letting any of her personality traits shine through. A simple wrong facial expression would blow the mission for her, and she knew Fayne wouldn't be pleased if something like that were to happen.

She took a deep breath, then opened the door. She found Thor on the other side. He looked even more tired than before, his efforts to console Loki seeming to tire him out exponentially.

He flashed her a quick smile before releasing a deep sigh. "May I come in?"

Maura nodded her head as she moved aside for Thor to enter the room.

He sat at a table on the far end of the room, resting his arms on the table and allowing his hands to fidget with one another.

She watched him carefully, closing the door then leaning against it. "Is everything alright?"

Thor chuckled as he brought his gaze to Maura. "I don't know, Lina. Loki is greatly upset by the events that occurred tonight. Are you sure that _you're_ alright?"

Maura nodded as she walked over to Thor. She sat on the opposite side of the table, her hands resting in her lap as she watched Thor's hands.

"You know," Thor started, his gaze eventually staring into nothing, "Loki does care about you a lot."

Maura swallowed hard.

"While you were gone, I watched one of the most brilliant and talented warriors exhaust every resource he had to try and find you. Father, Mother, and I tried to help him as much as we could but even we had started to lose hope that we'd ever find you." Thor sighed again. "While you were gone, there were a lot of things discovered about Loki that you may not find best suits your life together. I just want you to know that he loves you dearly. He's still the same man you fell in love with, there's just more to him than meets the eye right now."

Maura shifted in her seat. "Will he tell me?"

Thor nodded. "In his own time. I just wanted to be sure that you were aware that it's coming and that you understand that he loves you."

"I think she understands that perfectly, Thor," an icy voice called from the door.

Both Maura and Thor turned to find Loki watching them, his hands behind his back and his face like stone.

Thor looked at Maura, raised his eyebrows, then said, "I will take my leave now." He stood up, nodded towards Maura to say good night, then slid past Loki to leave the room.

Loki glared at him intensely as Thor left the room. As much as he understood Thor's concern, this was a matter between he and Lina that they needed to work out for themselves.

After the door clicked shut, Loki turned his attention to Maura who was looking at him with concerned eyes. He looked down, then walked towards Lina's bed, his magic changing his clothes back to the black pants and three-quarter sleeve green shirt he had been wearing prior to dinner. Climbing into bed, he situated himself then looked longingly at Maura. "Are you coming?"

Maura snapped out of the daze she was in and shed her robe. For the first time in her life, she felt exposed. She felt a sense of vulnerability that she felt with no other man, not even Fayne.

As she climbed in next to Loki, his arms wrapped around her tightly. He pulled her in close, nuzzling his face in her hair.

Maura wrapped her small arm around Loki's waist, unfamiliar with this sort of gentleness. Since she had returned to her life with Fayne, things weren't how they used to be. His once soothing touch towards her had become rough, his intentions seeming nothing more than a means to his ends. He made sure that she was taken care of and was left fulfilled, but there was no love as there had been before.

The passion that Fayne poured into his relationship with Maura had faded. And now here she was, with Fayne's enemy, enjoying every second of his company and not wanting him to let go.

But there was a nagging feeling at the back of her mind that pertained to the whole reason why she was there: Loki's secret.

"Loki," she whispered. She looked up at him, her eyes curious and wanting.

"Yes, my flower?" he replied, his eyes closed in thought.

"What is it that you needed to tell me?"

He opened his eyes slowly and met hers. Taking a deep breath, he said, "It is a story for another day, my love. You should sleep."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

The next day, Maura went to the training room and decided to practice her arrow shooting. She knew that it was a skill Lina was known for. Since she herself had just mastered it before Fayne sent her out to replace Lina, she needed to continue her practice.

The bow that her father had given her sister felt warm in her hand. It was a beautiful gift and for the first time in her life, she felt jealous that Lina had been able to live a life with their family while Maura had been outcast from their kingdom.

These were very unusual feelings for Maura to have. In her mind, she felt as if she was developing a great weakness. Never before did trivial things such as her family or even the touch of a man send her mind into a frenzy as it did now. To release steam, she started firing bow after bow. Each one landed precisely where she mean it to, some bows compounding on one another so that they split each other into two pieces.

She had rolled and tumbled all over the room, not even noticing that a person had dropped by on her practice session.

One arrow after another, she kept releasing. She was going so fast, that at one point when she turned, she ran right into Loki. She stumbled backwards onto the floor, then glared up at him.

"Someone's a bit of a grouch this morning," Loki teased, holding out his hand for her to grab.

Maura quickly wiped the glare off of her face, realizing it was something that Lina wouldn't do. She took Loki's had appreciatively and hugged him once she was on her feet. "What are you doing here?" she asked him.

Loki shrugged as he walked over to one of the targets to inspect her arrows. "I have nothing better to do at the moment so I figured I'd come and visit you."

Maura smiled at the thought as she walked over to him. "I'm sorry to disappoint, but I won't be finished training for a while."

Loki looked up at her and smiled. "I know. Your second half of training will be to work on your magic."

On the outside, Maura smiled but inside, she groaned. She was much better than Lina at performing different levels of magic. What she needed the practice in was the physical fighting.

Or that's what she thought.

After several hours of going back at forth with different spells, Maura collapsed on the floor, her face slightly blackened by a fire spell that had burst in her face. Because she was in Lina's body, her magical abilities were limited to what Lina could perform.

"I didn't like that at all," Maura moaned. It had been a great while since magic exhausted her like this.

Loki walked over to her and sat down, "Come here."

Against her body's wishes, Maura climbed into Loki's lap and rested her head on his shoulder.

"You'll get better with practice, okay love?"

She nodded, her eyes closing as she took in Loki's scent.

"Lina?" he called.

"Mm?" Maura replied, her eyes barely opening to acknowledge his call.

"Tonight, after dinner, I want to talk to you about something if you don't mind."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

It wasn't difficult for Lina to tell that her physical ability was definitely outweighed by her magical ability now that she and Maura had switched lives. She didn't even understand if they had switched lives or bodies or what. All she knew was that the room she was in prevented her from escaping with magic. That wasn't much of a surprise.

It had been a few days since she had last seen Fayne. He had last told her that she'd get her answers, but he never came back to give them to her. During that time, Lina couldn't help but worry about what Maura was doing to her life back at home. Not being able to call out for Loki when she wanted to or to get Thor's help was not only frustrating, but also was causing her to lose hope. The longer she was gone, the more she realized that they couldn't tell the difference between her and her evil sister.

How could they not find the differences sooner?

The turning of her door handle caused Lina to sit up from her bed suddenly. It was too early for the servant to be bringing her food so that could only mean one thing.

"Having a nice stay here?" Fayne asked, stepping into Lina's presence.

"Not particularly," Lina snapped, her browed furrowed in anger.

Everything that was happening was this man's fault. He took her away from her life for the first time, he took her away a second time, and now he's brought her sister in to do more of his dirty work in order to take over the nine realms.

Fayne laughed as he walked closer to her. Even from the distance he was at, she could smell the strong stench of mead. A sudden sense of worry overcame Lina.

"You should be very appreciative of everything that I'm giving you," Fayne explained, now standing in front of Lina as she continued to sit on her bed. "Most prisoners have to share their cells, have no bathroom, and don't receive three square meals a day as you do."

Lina sat in silence, still glaring at Fayne with cold eyes.

Fayne reached down to caress Lina's face with his large hand. She cringed, pulling away from him once his hand touched her face.

His face showed a flash of anger when Lina moved away from him. "In time, little one. You'll learn to appreciate what's in front of you and not be such a nasty little guest."

She didn't know why she let her emotions get the best of her, but as Fayne walked away, Lina said, "If my host wasn't so nasty himself then maybe his guest would have a reason to be decent."

If Fayne had been sober, he would have laughed off the comment and left the room.

But he wasn't.

Angry with her statement, a whip appeared in his hand. It glowed a hot orange and was at least six feet long. Before Lina knew what was happening, she felt the hot sting of the whip hit her from the side of her ribs down her stomach. She whelped in pain, falling to the floor as she covered her side.

Through her cries, all she could hear was the closing of the heavy door that indicated Fayne had left.

Once again, she was alone.

**fastreader12: No problem! I'm sorry that the updates have been so slow but thanks for sticking with the story! :)**

**Kieria: Thanks for reading! I'm glad you like them both. Zila's been my favorite character to write for so far. I'm sure she'll behave (for the most part :P haha)**

**Sorry for the lack of update last weekend. I was on another trip so I didn't get a chance to put out anything. Happy Thanksgiving and I hope you all are ready - December is just around the corner! :D**

**PM or review for suggestions, comments, or concerns! Thanks for your never-ending support! :)**

**With love,  
sparrowlina**


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